More Than A Zing
by Only-eyes-for-Riddick
Summary: AU: Kate Van Helsing is the last direct descendant of Ludwig Van Helsing, the first in a long line of Monster Hunters. However, Kate never believed in monsters, not until she walking in the hotel belonging the her ancestor's greatest enemy, Dracula. Takes place after Hotel Transylvania 2 and disregards Hotel Transylvania 3.
1. Prologue

**I do not own Hotel Transylvania. I had this idea after watching the original Hotel Transylvania and then decided to start writing it after seeing the 2nd. I then became caught up in life and lost my thoughts for this story until the 3rd movie was announced and, imagine my surprise, when I heard the story line. HA!**

 **Please be aware that this story will be darker than the Hotel Transylvania series is. I hope that you like it anyways. :)**

 **This is an AU story and I hope that you enjoy it.**

* * *

Over 100 years ago...

Monsters of all kinds lived among the humans who feared them, some even tried to hurt or kill them. It was a dangerous time to be a monster.

However, there was one who dared to live among the humans in peace. Count Dracula came to the small village with his wife and baby. He talked to the villagers and convinced them that he came in peace. The villagers believed him.

All but one.

Ludwig Van Helsing didn't trust the monsters that had taken over his village. He tried to convince the others, but they were under Dracula's mind control, he was sure. There was no way that a monster could live in peace with humans.

So Ludwig left the village to find a way to save his people.

He traveled far and wide before finding the cave of an Ancient.

Legend had it that the Ancients were all powerful and would help anyone in need. They wanted to protect this world and all the creatures upon it.

Ludwig begged the Ancient to give him the power to stop Dracula, to end the monster's terror upon his home.

Taking a drop of Ludwig's blood, the Ancient being peered into the man's soul. Was he worthy of the assistance?

The Ancient then turned to Ludwig Van Helsing with a sly smile.

"You are upon a path of hatred. Hatred towards the monsters. I can grant you the power you seek, but know this. One day, one of your own will yield to Dracula himself and lead the destruction of the Van Helsing line."

"But if I destroy Dracula now," Ludwig said, "then I need not worry. Dracula will not escape me."

The Ancient nodded before granting Ludwig exactly what he needed to stand toe-to-toe with Dracula.

Ludwig was able to run as fast as any monster, his body stronger to fight, his vision sharper than ever before even in pitch black darkness. He was also assured that Dracula would be unable to drain his body of blood as it was now poison to him. He would be able to sense monsters near him as well in order to better defend himself.

Ludwig praised himself for finding the Ancient before rushing off at top speed to return to his home. He never thanked the Ancient for the powers given to him, but the Ancient only smiled as the man ran from the cave.

"We will meet again, Van Helsing."

Ludwig did not hear the Ancient's parting words as he rushed off to his village. When he arrived he instantly felt the new sensation of monsters nearby. He smiled, knowing that soon this would be over and Dracula would be dead.

It took Ludwig longer to convince the people of his tiny village that they were being controlled then he assumed it would. Everyone stated that Dracula and his wife were kind and helpful.

Ludwig thought that was ridiculous. Dracula was up to something, he knew.

So, one night, he dressed in dark clothes and attacked a young woman walking home. He grabbed her and stabbed her, letting her blood drain out upon the ground. As she died, he quickly used the tip of his knife to make two small marks on her neck, letting a few blood drops drain out.

He left her there to die, the marks clear to anyone who passed.

She was discovered the next morning and an uproar started in the village. Everyone was confused as to why Dracula would have done this, exactly as Ludwig wanted.

Ludwig took the opportunity and pushed that Dracula was a villain and demon, that he would use and drain them all in time, one by one.

By nightfall, all the villagers feared the count and raised their pitchforks and fire against him.

Ludwig watched as Dracula tried to calm the crowd, insisting that he hadn't murdered the girl. He smiled as the crowd didn't believe him.

While the crowd continued to keep Dracula's attention, Ludwig moved around the building and inside Dracula's home. A few villagers followed and started setting the house on fire. He found the wife of the creature standing next to the demon baby the two had created. It made Ludwig sick.

He moved and attacked, stabbing the female vampire in the heart. She cried out, drawing Dracula's attention. The demon moved and stood across the room from Ludwig, the dead vampire between them.

Dracula's eyes turned red with anger as the house continued to burn around them.

Before the count could move, the baby cried, drawing his attention. Ludwig started to move, to take advantage of the monster's distraction, when a fiery beam fell between them, leaving Ludwig with the dead vampire on one side and Dracula with the baby on the other.

He watched as Dracula glared at him before he grabbed the small child and leaped out the nearest window.

Ludwig growled at the missed opportunity, before turning to leave.

It was then that a slight glitter grabbed his attention. He looked over and saw the dead vampire lying upon the ground. Surprised as he was that the body remained, as he was sure that stabbing her would cause her to turn to dust, his eyes were drawn to her left hand.

A gold ring, with a red jewel. Probably her wedding ring. He smirked. A dead creature had no need for such a ring.

He reached down and removed the ring from her hand, holding it in his own.

A trophy, he decided. That was what this was. Proof that he could defeat any monster that crossed his path. He smiled at the ring before placing it in his pocket.

He turned and walked out of the still burning building, knowing that someday Dracula would cross the path of the Van Helsings again.

And they would be ready for him.


	2. So It Begins

Present Day...

Kate looked at the beautiful countryside she found herself in. The green trees, the rolling hills, the mountains that seemed to keep going forever. It was wonderful.

She looked at the small town in Transylvania, busy and crowded for the upcoming festival. The Annual Monster Bash Celebration! Everyone would come in costumes, party and play games. She smiled as she thought just how much fun that would be.

However, she wasn't here for fun. Aunt Caroline had insisted she come to this area to find Dracula. Kate had rolled her eyes as Aunt Caroline told the same story to her as she had millions of times before while packing Kate's things.

Over 100 years ago, her ancestor Ludwig Van Helsing had found that an ancient being had inhabited his home. The creature was known as Count Dracula, a vampire. He had convinced the townsfolk that he and his wife meant them no harm, that they just wanted to live out their lives in peace.

Ludwig had never accepted it, sure that some sort of mind control was at work.

He gained the power to go against the vampire and convinced the people that Dracula was evil and set them upon him. They killed Dracula's wife and set his home ablaze.

Unfortunately for Ludwig, Dracula had escaped the flames. Ludwig had vowed then and there to hunt down the monster and finish what he started.

He took a trophy from the flames and carried it with him, passing it down from generation to generation as a reminder that they could defeat the monsters hiding among them.

Kate was the last of the direct Van Helsing line, a descendant of Ludwig himself.

According to Aunt Caroline, Kate had all the abilities that had been bestowed upon Ludwig all those years ago, making her the only one who could hunt down the terror known as Dracula.

Kate, however, found the whole story to be just that, a story. Dracula was a concept of someone's imagination, fictional. She would admit that she did seem strong and faster than other girls at her college, but she figured that was from her constant "training" as a child.

Aunt Caroline had raised her after her parents died when she was 8. She had a slew of cousins, aunts and uncles that all believed the story of Ludwig Van Helsing. To a young 8 year old girl who just lost the two people who meant the most to her, she accepted anything they said to be part of a family again.

Training involved learning a multitude of skills she hadn't expected to need to know. Loading a crossbow with a stake and then firing it accurately, using Holy Water as a weapon, how to make silver bullets. She had learned everything her aunt wanted her to know, but she yearned for freedom.

When she turned 18, she took it. She left home and went to college. She was going to learn culinary skills, maybe become a chef one day.

Aunt Caroline had been furious and nearly disowned her. It took 2 years before she finally spoke to her again, and it was to offer her this trip, but with a catch.

Rumors about Dracula in the area and, of all things, running a hotel had reached Aunt Caroline. She demanded Kate go and see if the rumors were true and, if so, destroy the greatest threat the Van Helsings had ever known.

Since she was on Spring Break, she decided that taking a week to explore the cuisine of Transylvania wouldn't be outside of her comfort zone. She could even look around for the person spreading the rumors and tell Aunt Caroline it was all a crazy story.

As she walked up the path to the small bed and breakfast she had found, she couldn't help smiling at the quaintness of it all.

Aunt Caroline had made all the arrangements, but didn't book her a room at the supposed Dracula-run hotel.

'He might remember your family name and kill you!' she had claimed. Kate was sure it was more a pricing concern.

Either way, as she looked around her beautiful room, the window gazed out over a small garden and across into the large forest, she felt at peace. Then, she narrowed her eyes at the sight of what appeared to be a building out there, past the trees.

"Excuse me," she said turning to the older gentleman who had shown her to her room, "What's that building across the forest?"

The gentleman smiled. "Oh! That's Hotel Transylvania. It's a wonderful hotel for both humans and monsters to relax."

Kate blinked before looking back out across the way. So the hotel existed, and the people in town believed that monsters stayed there. She chuckled to herself. How silly!

As she was left alone Kate wondered if that hotel was the source of the rumors. It was an interesting idea, of course, and would make great advertising.

She quickly changed out of the clothes she had traveled in and into a pair of blue jeans and an emerald green t-shirt. Her dark red strands were pulled up in a ponytail and she grabbed her flashlight, camera and her backpack.

She grabbed her room key and hurried downstairs. Time to explore this Hotel Transylvania. Perhaps the hotel would have some Transylvanian dishes she could try in the restaurant. She smiled at the thought before heading out into the woods.

The sun provided plenty of lighting as she walked deeper into the forest surrounding the small town and hotel. She couldn't believe it when the trees parted and she was standing at the edge of a cliff, across from which stood a glorious Gothic hotel. She smiled and looked around, finding the entry to the hotel at the edge of her cliff to the left.

She followed the cliff edge to the entrance, being careful not to look down. She couldn't really see the bottom down there and didn't want to know how far down it really went.

She gave a sigh of relief when she reached the entryway. She walked up the walkway slowly, stopping in the middle to watch the sun set over the horizon. She looked back towards the ever-darkening forest and considered going back to town, but …

She turned back to the hotel and continued towards it. Something inside was telling her to continue forward. It was unlike anything she had ever felt before and she wanted to explore it further. A feeling of understanding and confusion that she had never felt before.

She walked into the revolving glass doors and into the most beautiful lobby she had ever seen.

Aunt Caroline could never have afforded a place like this. Kate smiled at her aunt's silliness. Dracula running a hotel? How funny.

There were many people in the lobby, most of them in elaborate monster costumes. They all had to be professionally made, there was no way an amateur could have made most of them.

No one turned to look at her as she looked around the lobby. She was so distracted by the gorgeous view that she didn't see the body she suddenly ran into.

The force knocked her back and she started to fall, only to be caught at the last second before she hit the ground by a pair of strong arms.

"Whoa there, watch your step." A deep voice said, a Transylvanian accent attached.

"Sorry," she said as she regained her balance. She looked up, embarrassed, only to find her heart skip a beat.

This man standing before her was incredible. Tall and regal with dark black hair slicked back, a handsome smile and the most beautiful pair of blue eyes she had ever seen. The paleness of his skin and the darkness of his hair and clothes only made the eyes pop out more.

Two conflicting feelings filled her. The first was the same one that had pushed her to come into the hotel and the second was as if she had flown to the highest point and kept going. Both were extreme and both were conflicting, causing a wave of dizziness to overcome her momentarily.

She swayed and he reached out and took her arm gently, his touch only causing the feelings to intensify. He helped her to a chair and she sat, willing this sudden dizzy spell to pass. "Sorry," she said again. "That's never happened to me before."

"Are you alright?"

She opened her eyes and fell on his hand still on her arm. His left hand with a wedding ring on it. She let out a breath. Of course he was married. She never met good-looking single men.

Her eyes narrowed on the ring a moment longer, but not because of what it symbolized. That ring...looked familiar. She just couldn't place it at the moment.

The hand disappeared and she followed it up and continued until she was looking into those blue eyes again. This time she took in the man's outfit as well.

She giggled at the sight. "Let me guess," she said gesturing to the outfit. "You're Count Dracula."

He raised an eyebrow at her, a look of confusion upon his face. "Yes, I run this hotel."

Kate couldn't believe this. Her aunt had sent her off on a wild goose chase, all for a man who dressed like a vampire as a gimmick for his hotel. She knew it was crazy to begin with, but even for Aunt Caroline this was crazy.

"And you are?"

She blinked. How rude of her. "I'm Kate," she said with a smile. "Just so you know, I'm not staying at your hotel." She looked around the lobby. "Although I wish that I was."

"Oh? Then why are you here?"

She stood, slowly in case the dizziness returned, before turning to face him. "I can see your hotel from my bed and breakfast in town. I heard it was lovely and wanted to see what I was missing out on. Plus, I was hoping I could check out your restaurant and sample some of the cuisine you have here. I'm studying to be a chef you see."

He smiled at her. "Of course," he said, "but I'm sorry to say that the hotel accommodations are for the hotel guests only."

Her smile faded. "Oh! I didn't think of that," she said before taking a deep breath and smiling at him again. "Well, at least I got a nice walk and got to see the beauty of your hotel for myself. Thank you for helping me."

She turned to leave but suddenly he was in front of her, stopping her movements. She blinked in surprise, he moved so fast, before looking up at him. He was looking down at her with wide eyes. "You walked here?"

Kate nodded slowly. "Yes, I enjoy nature."

"But, it's dark now. How will you get back?"

Kate pointed to her feet. "Same way I got here."

She moved to walk around him, but he stopped her again. "That's not safe. That forest is safe to walk through during the day, but at night..."

"I'm sure I'll be okay." Kate knew she would be. Aunt Caroline's training had made sure that she could take care of herself in any situation.

He shook his head. "No, I insist. Tonight you stay here and you can walk back in the morning."

Kate's eyes widened. "Oh no!" she exclaimed. "I can't afford to stay in such a nice hotel. I'll be fine walking back on my own."

Again, the owner stopped her from walking around him. "No, I insist. No charge." She opened her mouth to once again tell him that she would be fine. "You could try out the restaurant for dinner tonight if you stay."

She closed her mouth and her eyes widened. She really did want to try the food. It was the main reason she was coming to Transylvania in the first place. She smiled. "Okay, stop pulling my leg. I'll stay."

The owner seemed to relax at those words before directing her to the desk. "I'll just grab a key and get you set up."

"Thank you...um..." she shook her head. "I'm sorry, I'm not sure what I should call you."

"Dracula."

"No, seriously."

He turned back to her with a key in his hand, confusion on his face. "Why not? It's my name."

Kate nodded slowly at that. He took his role very seriously. "Okay...thanks Dracula."

He handed her the key and explained how she would find the room, also pointing out the restaurant as well. She smiled at him again before heading off to find her temporary bedroom for the night.

What a strange man, actually wanting people to call him Dracula. He must really take this whole hotel business seriously. She wondered if he was the one spreading the rumors. It wouldn't be a surprise. It was a great gimmick.

Either way, at least she would be able to check out more of this gorgeous hotel and try some Transylvanian cuisine. After all, that was the whole point of taking this trip in the first place.


	3. Exciting News

Dracula smiled at the patrons in his restaurant. He loved watching people enjoy the food of his homeland as well as relaxing in his hotel.

As he walked around the edge of the room, observing everything, he saw her. The red head that had bumped into him earlier that day, Kate.

Her hair was still up in a ponytail, hanging straight down the center of her back. She took a seat and smiled as the zombie waiter gave her a menu. She didn't freak out like some of the humans did when they visited for the first time. She was a nice girl.

It was part of the reason he didn't want her wandering about the forest at night. It was easy to get lost out there and would have caused problems had something happened, even accidentally. So, he had offered a room up until morning. They weren't at capacity tonight even with the big Monster Bash coming up in town in a few days.

However, that would change the closer they got to the celebration. For now, he was glad he had an option for the young woman.

He continued on his rounds, ignoring the girl for a while. When he looked back towards her about an hour later, he found that she had ordered traditional Transylvanian dishes rather than the burgers and pasta they offered for the human guests. He watched as she took a bit and seemed to savor it before moving on.

She had said that she was training to be a chef and it seems as though she hadn't lied about that.

He almost moved to walk towards her when he felt a tug on his cape. He turned to find himself looking down at his grandson, Dennis.

"Hiya Papa Drac!" he said with a huge smile.

"Hello my little Denisovich. How are you today?" He smiled down at the young boy. He was getting too old, at 8 now, to pick up.

"Great. Mom said that we can go swimming later."

Dracula smiled. "Sounds like a lot of fun."

"You'll come too, won't you?"

He glanced back at the woman at the table. Something about her drew his attention, but he wasn't sure exactly what it was. She took another bite of food and her eyes closed as she ate, a smile slowly forming on her face.

She wasn't beautiful, but she wasn't plain either. It wasn't her looks that drew his attention, then what was it?

"Papa Drac?"

Dracula turned his attention back to his grandson and smiled. "Of course I'll be there," he said. "Now run along to your mother and I'll see you a little later."

"See ya later, Papa Drac!" Dennis said as he rushed out of the dining room. Dracula smiled as the young boy before turning back to the room.

A pair of bright emerald eyes were watching him now, accompanied by a shy smile. For a moment Dracula stood in shock. She was prettier than he thought. That smile lit up her green eyes and almost made them look like emeralds.

He smiled back briefly before continuing his rounds. It had been way too long since he had last been with a woman. No woman after his late wife could compare so he hadn't bothered to pursue any. What would be the point? You only zing once and his zing was gone.

* * *

Kate watched the young boy leave the dining room before turning back to Dracula. He was watching the child run with a smile that only a father could have. Was that child his? A sharp pain filled her at the thought, although it confused her.

He turned back to the room and his bright blue eyes caught hers. She gave a shy smile, which he returned, before he went back to his job.

She turned back to the delicious meal she was enjoying. She hadn't noticed anyone else in the room as she ate, no one except Dracula.

Why he caused this conflicting emotions inside her she didn't know. On the one hand she felt like she should be doing something other than sitting there eating, and on the other she was acting like a shy schoolgirl with a crush.

"He's married," she whispered to herself as she continued to eat. However, reminding herself of that thought did nothing as her eyes still sought him out through her meal. After the child left, Dracula left as well so she took a deep breath and continued eating her meal.

After she finished eating some of the most delicious and unusual Transylvanian dishes, she stood and started to head back upstairs, her mind trying to work out all the flavors and spices that were in the dishes.

On her way she passed a young woman in a bathing suit following the same young boy she had seen visiting Dracula in the dining room earlier. The child bumped into Kate.

"Oh! Dennis, be careful!," the young girl said. She looked up at Kate with the same blue eyes Dracula had and smiled. "Sorry about that," she said. "He's just excited to go swimming."

Kate smiled back. "It's okay. No harm done."

The woman laughed before another man came up behind her, this one with the same wild red hair the boy had. "Hey Mavis, do you think Dennis still needs these water-wings?"

Kate looked at the group and could tell that they were a family. If that was the case, then how did Dracula fit into this? She had seen the child rush up to him and hug him, just like a child would do to a family member. He was too young to be the boy's grandfather and the two people in front of her were way too young to be Dracula's parents. Maybe they were uncle and nephew? That made sense and would explain the family resemblance between this girl and Dracula as well.

That had to be it.

"Well, I'll let you get back to the pool plans," she said before moving past the small family and down the hall to her room.

She was exhausted after a long day of flying and then hiking through the woods. She needed to relax and get some sleep.

She still had to walk back to her own hotel in the morning.

She removed her jeans, shirt and bra, leaving her in just her panties. She wasn't really a fan of sleeping semi-nude, but all her clothes were back in her room at the B&B. She had no choice.

She washed up as best she could before crawling into the super soft bed and falling asleep.

* * *

Dracula waved at Dennis and Johnny as they swam in the pool. That young boy meant the world to Dracula

He turned to his daughter, who was sitting on the pool's edge with her feet in the water watching the two boys swim.

"So," he said knelling down next to her. "How's my favorite vampire?"

She smiled at her father. "Good Dad. Just glad that Johnny and Dennis are having fun right now before Dennis goes back to vampire school next week."

Dracula nodded. It was hard with the 8-year-old kid in school now. However, it did let Mavis and Johnny have some time alone. Something they had been missing since Dennis was born.

"Also, I have some news."

Dracula turned to his daughter with a raised eyebrow. "Oh! You aren't planning on leaving the hotel are you?" He said, his voice becoming very worried suddenly.

Mavis smiled. "No Dad. I can see how happy both Johnny and Dennis are here. I'm happy to be here too. My news is that...well..."

Dracula placed his hand on his daughter's shoulder and looked at her with concern. "Is everything okay?"

Mavis laughed before taking another deep breath. "I'm pregnant...again."

Dracula's eyes widened and then he smiled at his daughter. "Another grandchild," he said softly. "That's wonderful news!"

He pulled his daughter into a hug and couldn't help the feeling of warmth the flowed into him. Life was great. His family continued to grow and expand as was his love for them. He couldn't be happier unless, somehow, Martha was here with them.

However, he knew that would never be. Martha was gone.

As he stood and walked from the pool area, he wrapped a hand around the ring on his finger.

Martha's ring had been exactly the same as his own, just smaller. After the fire had died down he had gone back to look for it, as a keepsake he could give to Mavis when she grew up to remind her of her mother.

He hadn't found it.

To this day he wondered if it had melted in the flames or if the townsfolk had found it and sold it for money. Either way the ring was gone and the only things Mavis had to remind her of her mother was a book she had made for her 118th birthday and portraits he had around of her.

He felt a slight anger fill him as he thought of why Martha wasn't there.

Ludwig Van Helsing.

That stupid man had killed Martha, taken a mother from Mavis and left Dracula all alone. There would never be another zing for him, she was his one.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, allowing the anger to slow release from him. It didn't matter now. Over 100 years had passed and Ludwig Van Helsing was dead.

There was no reason to fear the Van Helsings anymore.


	4. Getting To Know You

Kate awoke an hour or so before sunrise. She felt more refreshed than she had in a long time. She stretched before standing and grabbing her clothes.

Her clothing felt so rough against her skin after the softness of the sheets and comforter. She had to wonder just what count the sheets were to be that soft. No wonder her aunt sprang for the smaller B&B rather than this huge hotel.

After dressing she walked downstairs leaving the key on the front desk. There were a few people about in the lobby, but primarily it was quiet. Weird for a hotel, but it was early so she shrugged it off. She started down the steps to leave.

Then Dracula came out from around the corner. He smiled at her when he saw her and her heart skipped two beats.

'Calm yourself, he's married.' she told her heart, but that didn't stop it from skipping another beat when he walked over to her.

"Leaving so soon," he said.

"Well, the sun will be up soon and I need to get back. I have a few other things I want to do this week, including the Monster Bash Celebration. The food is sure to be wonderful."

Dracula watched as her eyes lit up at the mention of food. They had done the same when she was eating the night before.

"Don't hesitate to return," Dracula heard himself say. "We have lots of different Transylvanian dishes you can try. I'll even let you go into the restaurant without having a room key."

Her eyes widened and brightened. "That sounds wonderful. Thank you!" How she wanted to hug him at those words, but that would be awkward. They barely knew each other. "I just may take you up on that."

"Dad! Dennis is looking for you!"

Dracula turned and Kate followed his gaze. The young woman she had bumped into in the hallway before. She glanced back at Dracula and then at the girl. Dad? There was no way. Not unless this guy had a kid when he was around 10 year old. Must be something she misheard.

"Be right there Mavis," he replied before turning back to Kate. "I must go, but do come again."

She nodded before turning and walking out the door.

The woods were becoming brighter as the sun slowly rose over the horizon. She glanced back at the hotel behind her and wished she could stay, but she had a million things to do.

First she had to go back to her room and change, although she was sure that no clothing options she had brought would be as soft as those sheets had been.

Kate spent two days in town, exploring the smaller shops and cafes there, listening to the villagers talk about the upcoming Monster Bash celebration. She enjoyed it, but found that she wanted to return to Dracula's hotel. She hadn't wanted it to seem like she was hunting Dracula down, but somehow she couldn't help herself. She wanted to find him.

Thinking about him caused butterflies to erupt in her stomach and her heart seemed lighter. That feeling of confusion that she had before when she approached the hotel the first time never came back. It must have been jet lag or something.

The people in the town were extremely kind to her, and always spoke so highly of the "Count in the hotel." All spoke about him as if he really was the Count Dracula of legend.

She smiled at that. Even the villagers were in on the whole Dracula thing. It didn't bother her, but she wondered just what his real name was. Surely it wasn't actually Dracula, that would be so weird.

Today she played it smart, taking a scooter to the hotel instead of walking. She arrived just at sunset to enjoy a fine meal in the restaurant.

As Dracula had promised, she was allowed access, even without a room key. It was amazing. She sat down and took in the room as she read over her menu.

Suddenly the confusing feeling, a mix of understanding and fear, came back full force just as she heard someone take the seat across from her. She looked up and found herself looking into a pair of smiling blue eyes.

"Hello Kate, welcome back."

She smiled, setting her menu aside. "Well, you invited me back to try more of your chef's delicious food. How could I refuse?"

He smiled at her. "So, what are you planning to try tonight?"

They sat together and talked while she had her meal. He didn't take her offer to try any of the food she had, but he did like watching her eat.

She seemed to savor every bite. Every time she had something new to try, she closed her eyes and slowly enjoyed it. She even would give a slight sigh if the bite was particularly good.

They chatted about nothing much, but still laughed a lot. She told him about her school life and he told her about the cuisine she was eating and the history of the area. She asked a dozens of questions about the area and Dracula enjoyed answering them. She was a bright and intelligent woman and she was easily able to pick out some of the spices in the more complicated dishes. She would make a great chef one day.

"This dessert is so wonderful!" she said as she ate the dessert Dracula insisted she have. "The berries are so fresh and the cake has such a unique flavor. It's not cinnamon or nutmeg, but something...different. Oh! It's just so good!"

Dracula smiled and Kate felt herself blush. He had such a handsome smile.

"I'm glad that you like it," he said, his accent rolling over her in a way that sent shivers down her spine and warmed her.

"I'm glad that you suggested it. I may have to take some pastry classes when I get home."

As she stood, Dracula stood as well. "Can I show you around my hotel?"

Kate looked at him with surprise in her eyes. She hadn't expected him to offer to show her around. She smiled, excited to see more of this beautiful hotel. "I would love to!"

The two walked out of the restaurant, Dracula's cape sweeping behind him gently caressing her arm. She knew that he wasn't doing this on purpose, but every caress caused her blood to warm even more.

'He's married!' she told herself, reminding herself this over and over again.

He showed her around the hotel, running into tons of people still dressed in costume. Everyone was friendly and had wide smiles. Kate couldn't help smiling back at everyone she passed, even though that feeling she didn't understand remained around her, it was easier to ignore it as she was overwhelmed by the beauty of the hotel.

"This is the library," he said opening the next door. Kate walked in and her smile almost widened even more.

"This is amazing!" She said looking around the room.

Books lined the walls, floor to ceiling in the round room. The only area not covered with books was a fireplace with a wooden mantle and dark brick pipe. There were two dark red armchairs facing the fireplace with a chessboard set up between the two.

"Wow! Chess," she said walking and taking a seat. "Do you play?"

Dracula walked across the room and took a seat in the opposite chair. "I have been playing for centuries, but as of late I have been unable to find a partner for the game."

Kate chuckled before gesturing to the board. "Your move Count."

Dracula smirked at Kate as he moved his Queen into position. "Checkmate," he said firmly. Kate looked up at him with wide eyes before she examined the board.

He watched her emerald eyes scan over the board, looking for any move that could counter him. There was no move she could make, but she was cute to try and find one.

It had been a long time since he had played chess. Mavis hadn't been interested in learning and his other friends were not the type to relax playing a game like this. He hadn't really played since Martha had been alive.

The thought of his late wife made him slightly saddened. He knew that she was gone and had been for years, but the pain was still as fresh as it was the day it had happened.

"You're right," she said drawing his attention back to the present. She leaned back in her chair and had a mock pout on her face. It gave her an adorable look he hadn't anticipated she would make.

She glanced at him from the side of eyes and tried to hold the look on her face but the corners of her mouth slowly and the pout turned into a smile, and then a laugh.

"Sorry," she said. "It's been a long time since I've had a good game of chess, even longer since I've lost a good game of chess."

"I can agree with that," he responded before standing. "It is late, you will not be able to get back to your hotel tonight."

She blinked and stood, looking at the watch on her wrist with wide eyes. "Oh dear! You're right. It's already midnight." She smiled up at him. "Don't worry though, I brought a scooter. I'll be back in town in a jiffy."

"Are you sure? I would not wish for anything to happen to you in the woods."

She nodded. "Positive. Besides, all my clothes and things are back at my hotel. If I stayed here again, I would be wasting the money my aunt paid for that room there."

They stood and walked back to the front of the hotel. It had been a long time since Dracula had felt at peace around a human, at least one that wasn't Johnny. He was sure that she didn't believe him about being the real Dracula, but she was just a tourist. At the end of the week she would be gone and forget about him. He didn't have to prove that he was a vampire to her.

Besides, the thought of her rejecting him because he was a vampire bothered him.

He walked her out to her scooter. "You should come again," he said.

She hopped on the scooter and looked back at him. "For sure. I have to take back my chess champion title."

Dracula nodded as she revved up the scooter and drove off down the driveway. Dracula smirked before turning to walk back into the hotel.

He didn't know what it was about that girl that made him want to spend time with her, but she was interesting.

They met every night after that. First they would eat, well Kate would eat, in the restaurant and then they would retire to play a round of chess.

Kate didn't win a single game, but she still enjoyed playing. After 3 more nights of losing Kate chuckled at her continued loss.

"I guess I can't compete with someone who's played for centuries," she said with a joking tone.

"I suppose not," Dracula replied. "Are you coming to the Monster Bash Celebration tomorrow? It's going to be fun and there will be lots more foods for you to try."

Kate eyes widened at the promise of more food choices to try and she smiled. "Of course! It's my last night in town before I have to head back. School starts again on Monday after all."

Hearing that she was leaving made Dracula sad. It had been a long time since he had a friend like her. Frank and the others were great pals, but they didn't enjoy quieter things like he did from time to time. Martha had been like that, but she was gone. It was kind of nice to enjoy those things again after so long.

Kate waved as she rode away, promising to return the following night for the celebration. Dracula smiled, excited that he would see her again and even surprised by the feeling. He hadn't set out to make a friend of her, only to treat a tourist to the food and history of his homeland.

He was as excited for tomorrow's celebration as a young 50-year-old would be.


	5. Discoveries

Kate arrived at the hotel on the last night of the celebration with excitement filling her body, overpowering the usual feelings she had. Strange that she only had these feelings when she came to the hotel, a feeling a doubt, worry and confusion, as if something was out of place.

However, there was no time for that feeling tonight. She was just happy that Dracula had invited her back for the special celebration that was meant just for hotel guests, even if she had to admit that it was just friendship he was looking for. It seemed strange that in all this time she hadn't met the man's wife.

Maybe she was away on a trip or something, that would explain her absence. Not that it really mattered one way or another, he wore a ring, proof that he had someone he cared about. Friendship was all that she could hope for.

As she entered the hotel, she wondered where exactly she would need to go. Then she heard laughter by the pool area and decided to follow it. As she walked she could feel the excitement fill her at the thought of the foods that would be there, and Dracula.

She continued on and found everyone was out in the pool, at least a lot of people were. She stood in the doorway heading out to where the pool was and her eyes widened in surprise.

They took the costumes to the next level out here. They still were wearing them and it seemed like they were full body ones and waterproof too. They were swimming and laughing, having a grand time.

Dracula was on the other side of the pool across from her chatting with a man dressed like a mummy, he had a smile on his face as they chatted. She saw a few people who decided not to dress up around as well and a few people in less elaborate costumes. It was almost like a monster costume party.

She looked down at her jeans and t-shirt and felt under-dressed. She shrugged. Oh, well.

As she stood there, looking out on this scene, a sudden feeling of dread and fear came over her. Why? This was a happy scene. Everyone was having a good time, so why?

She watched as a man dressed like Frankenstein's monster climbed up and jumped into the pool. The splash was huge, even from a short distance. She laughed with everyone else at the splash.

Then the man stood and Kate's eyes widened.

His head was missing. His Head...Was Missing!

Panic set in and her heart started to race. Everyone was still laughing, why the hell was no one doing anything?

Then the mummy Dracula had been talking too walked over and picked up the head where it had landed next to the pool. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. The head was laughing too!

She glanced around and started to really look at the people. She had thought the costumes were too good to be true. Because they were.

They weren't costumes, they were real. Monsters were real.

She turned and found herself meeting Dracula's eyes. He was looking at her intently, as if seeing her for the first time.

He had said that he name was Dracula. It wasn't a costume. It wasn't a persona.

He was Count Dracula.

That feeling of dread and fear just now, that confusing feeling of understanding she had felt all week when she came to this hotel, it was her ability to sense monsters activating. She had never felt it before so she hadn't realized it. Aunt Caroline wasn't crazy. Monsters were real. The family story was true!

But that was entirely right. During this week as she looked around the small town and the hotel here, where monsters and humans lived in harmony, she knew that Aunt Caroline was wrong about them.

Monsters were no threat to humans. Maybe they never were.

She turned and ran, her mind in a whirlwind at all the new information. That speed she had always had, that she had thought was just the result of training, she now knew was because of the abilities granted to the Van Helsing family. She ran as far as she could, ignoring the trees ripping at her skin and clothes. Her hair got caught in branches and pulled them out from the ponytail.

She felt like she had run a mile or two when she finally stopped, her heart still pounding in her ears. She had to calm down, she had to relax. She had to stop and think.

She looked back towards the hotel, her thoughts going to Dracula there. He wasn't hurting anyone, he wasn't treating humans like a food source. Everything she had ever been told was a lie. He was just a man trying to take care of his friends and family.

That small family she bumped into in the hallway that first night, that really was his daughter and her husband. That would mean that small boy was his grandson. If he was immortal that would make sense.

She leaned back against the tree and ran a hand over her face. Her entire world had just turned upside down.

"I have never met met a human who could ran as fast as any monster, except one."

Kate's head shot up and she found herself face to face with Dracula. Those blue eyes were focused on her and she felt that blasted feeling overwhelm her again. Dread and fear and...something else.

Something that was uplifting and wonderful, a feeling she understood better than the first. Two conflicting emotions warring inside her as she looked at the vampire before her.

He took a step towards her and his eyes examined her as if seeing her for the first time. Her emerald eyes focused on him and he stared at her, like staring into her soul.

"Those eyes..."

"They were my great-grandfather's eyes." She had seen a portrait of Ludwig in her Aunt's home, along with hundreds of "trophies" from former monster hunting experiences. She knew that her green eyes were from him.

Dracula took a step back and his eyes narrowed in a way she hadn't expected. He glared at her in anger. He had made the connection.

"Ludwig Van Helsing."

Her eyes widened. "That's my great-grandfather."

His blue eyes flashed red and she felt fear fill her. She might have been able to laugh it all off before, convince herself that it was a dream or lack of sleep. But this she couldn't deny. He really was Count Dracula, a vampire.

"Why did you come here, Van Helsing?" His voice was cold towards her, like ice. "Did you come to finish what your ancestor started over 100 years ago?"

Her heart dropped as the family legend came back to her. Ludwig had killed the countess, killed Dracula's wife. It was the height of his achievements and always told to young Van Helsing children as a story of good conquering evil. All terrible things. The ring on his finger didn't mean he was married, it was a sign of a widow. Her heart broke at that thought. Her family had caused him so much suffering.

"I...I didn't come to do anything," she said softly. "I didn't believe that you were actually Count Dracula until a few moments ago."

"Lies!"

He moved and she wasn't prepared. Everything that had happened up till now had dulled her senses. His hand wrapped around her neck and she was pressed against the tree she had been standing next to. He slammed her so hard the air left her lungs and she groaned in pain. His eyes were glowing blood red and his grip was tight. He was so angry.

Tears filled her eyes as she thought of the pain he had gone through, because of her family.

"Why are you really here?" he said, his voice low.

She opened her mouth to speak, but his grip was too tight, she couldn't speak. She tried again and could only manage a squeak. He glared at her before suddenly releasing her.

She toppled to the ground taking deep intakes of breath. Her throat hurt and breathing was a chore.

"Why?"

She looked up at him briefly before looking back down at her hands. Tears fell from her eyes but her voice remained steady.

"I was sent here by my aunt. She had heard rumors that you would be somewhere in Transylvania. I was sent because I'm the last Van Helsing directly descended from Ludwig himself. I am the only one who still have the abilities given to his family. I didn't believe there was anything here, I only came to indulge them and try the cuisine. I never thought I would find anything, never believed that you were real, that you existed."

He glared at her as she told her tale. She had tricked him, playing so innocent and honest when all she was planning was to kill him and Mavis, just like her ancestors before had killed his Martha.

She had been sweet when she bumped into him in the lobby. Her body had been soft when it bumped into his, her skin was soft and her eyes had looked at him with such innocence and kindness. She had seemed to truly enjoy the food they had served in the restaurant and the time they spent playing chess, just talking about everything and nothing at all. There was nothing about her that seemed to shout someone who was going to betray them. Pretending she didn't know who they were while all the while planning to destroy them.

However, her face when Frank's head had come off didn't look like the face of someone who was planning to kill anyone. It had been filled with shock and surprise. It was as if she really hadn't known what was going on. She ran from the hotel rather than play it off. She ran instead of attacking. She ran instead of pretending to be interested in what was going on.

His eyes faded back to his normal blue as he considered her words. Was it possible she really didn't know? Could he believe her? Believe a Van Helsing?

"I'm sorry."

He blinked. Sorry? What was she sorry for?

She was crying, her clothes were torn and dirty, her hair was hanging around her face. She looked like she had been through a war, all from just running from the hotel.

She stood and wrapped her arms around herself. She didn't look back up at him, but her face had a look of complete sadness.

Her hand came up and rubbed her eyes...no, she was wiping tears away. She turned to him, but kept her eyes down. The anger that he had felt melted at the sight of her tears. How was that possible?

"I wish that I wasn't immune to your mind control." Her voice was soft as she spoke to him. "If I wasn't you could just erase the hotel from my memories and you would be secure in the knowledge that your family and friends would be safe from the Van Helsing family." She lowered her arms and stood straight, although her gaze was focused on his chest rather than looking him in the eyes. "If you wish to kill me to protect that knowledge, I won't hold it against you and I won't stop you."

Kill her?

A sharp pierce of pain hit him at the thought. She was a member of that blasted Van Helsing family, he should be able to kill her. It would be best, to protect his family.

Yet...he found that even lifting his hand towards her with that intention was difficult.

She had closed her eyes, she didn't want to watch him come towards her. Silent tears rolled down her cheeks and he felt inside that he couldn't kill her. He felt that she was telling the truth, she hadn't known about him and his kind, that she had believed them to be legends.

For some reason, he believed her, he believed Kate Van Helsing.

"I don't wish to kill you," he said. Her eyes opened and she looked up at him, finally looking him in eyes.

He knew these eyes belonged to Ludwig Van Helsing, but right now he felt that they were wholly Kate's. They were sparkling from unshed tears and there was a redness from the tears she had already cried. She looked surprised. She truly thought he would kill her to protect his family.

In the past, he might have.

"I swear to you," she said softly, "I will never speak of your hotel to anyone. I will not return here and I will not tell my family where you are. You will never have to fear the Van Helsings in the future."

She took a deep breath and kept eye contact with him, her gaze firm on him.

"If you ever feel threatened by the Van Helsings or that I am lying to you, you can kill me. I won't resist."

Dracula didn't respond to that, couldn't respond. The thought of killing Kate bothered him more than he thought it would. The two stood in silence after than when Dracula registered the sun rising over the horizon. He hadn't realized how late it was.

"I'll head back to the village and pack my bags," she said drawing his attention back to him. "My plane flies out today and you will never see me again." That thought of never seeing Kate again caused another sharp pain in Dracula, but he ignored it. She is a Van Helsing. He shouldn't wish to see her again. She turned back towards the village. "The sun will be up soon. You should head back to avoid sunburn. Good-bye Count Dracula."

She started walking away from him, her back to him. She had called him Count, the title bringing more pain than he had anticipated, as if a wall has just been created between them.

He stood there, watching her walk away from him back towards the forest, until the sun breached the horizon forcing him to return to the hotel.

Kate walked back to the small bed and breakfast, her heart heavy. She couldn't believe what she had seen. Monsters were real and she had spent basically a whole week with the one her family wanted to destroy the most.

Her heart broke as she started to pack her bags.

She thought back to the conversations she had shared with Count Dracula, the multiple games of chess, the delicious food she had tried at his suggestion, the tingles she felt being close to him, the bright blue of his eyes, his smile, his laugh.

She meant what she said when she told him to kill her. She didn't want anything to happen to him or his family. She wanted him to be secure in that knowledge. She wouldn't speak about him to anyone.

She would keep him safe in her heart till the day she died.

After she finished packing her bag, she left the room and bid farewell to the couple that owned the B&B she had stayed at with a smile that she didn't really feel. They had been kind to her in the short week she had stayed with them, treating her like family.

She walked to the main road and caught a cab to the airport. She glanced back towards the forest as she rode down the road. She wanted to stop and stay here, stay with Dracula. She shook that thought out of her head.

That would never work. She was a Van Helsing, she always would be a Van Helsing. He hated her family. They took his wife from him, killed her, forced him to raise his daughter alone.

He could never accept her into his life, even as a friend.

That thought hurt her more than anything else. Her heart was heavy as she got to the airport and boarded the plane back towards Aunt Caroline's hometown. From there she would travel spend a couple days before flying back to school.

As she looked out the window as the plane flew into the sky she finally let the tears fall.

She knew that she would never return to Transylvania. She would never see Dracula again. It killed her to think of that, but she knew that there was no other way.

There would never be another one like him. She knew that no other man would ever measure up. Tears filled her eyes as the plane reached the cruising altitude and her feelings overwhelmed her.

She had fallen in love with him, but they would never have a happy ending.


	6. Running Away

You only zing once.

This was a fact that was well known among all monsters, but especially Dracula.

He had spent the last 128 years without his zing, without his wife, Martha.

As he looked out across the forest bathed in the sunlight of the day, he watched as airplanes flew overhead, one of which he knew contained Kate.

He had the opportunity to eradicate a member of the family that had lead to his wife's death, the last direct descendant of Ludwig Van Helsing himself, and he couldn't do it.

When Martha had died, he had focused on taking care of his infant daughter. Revenge had always been on the back of his mind, but taking care of Mavis took all his attention and that desire had faded. As more time passed, he was convinced that the Van Helsing family was no longer a threat once Ludwig was gone.

That apparently wasn't completely true.

Kate had brought back the anger and vengeance he felt for the Van Helsings full-force and had even given him an opportunity to enact that revenge upon her, let him kill her.

But even with the rage of revenge roaring through his veins, he could not bring himself to kill Kate Van Helsing.

He watched another plane fly overhead and he wondered if she was on it. Then he tossed that thought out of his head. He wasn't going to dwell on Kate Van Helsing anymore. She was out of his life and he wanted it that way.

He would focus on his family, just like he had in the past. As angry as he still felt against the Van Helsings for the death of his wife, he knew that revenge wouldn't bring her back. He would focus instead on keeping his family safe.

There was no need to think about Kate or any of the other Van Helsings ever again unless Kate broke her promise and they showed up on his doorstep. If that happened, he would be ready.

* * *

6 months later...

Dennis flew across the forest and farther from the castle.

With Mom having a baby, Dad and Papa Drac were running all around and paying no attention to him. He felt so left out. Why couldn't anyone hang out with him?

There was Winnie of course, but she had left with her family a bit ago to go on a trip and he was lonely. Besides, she always had her brothers and sisters around.

Whatever! He would just go out on his own and find new friends who didn't have any little brothers or sisters that could hang out with him all the time, he didn't need his family or his old friends.

He flew and flew for what felt like forever before stopping and transforming back to human form. There was a park and he was excited to see if there were any other kids hanging out there.

He stepped out and started running around, looking for someone to hang out with.

He ran and ran, but still didn't see any other kids around. Maybe it was too late for human kids? It was closer to midnight at this point.

He sat on a bench and let out a sigh. What was he going to do now?

He sat there for a long time when he realized that someone was sitting next to him. He turned and looked at an older woman with gray hair and dark green eyes. She was glaring at him.

"Hello?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, which only made Dennis more uncomfortable.

"Okay..." he stood and started to walk away. Suddenly he felt a hard crack to the back of his head and he descended into darkness.

* * *

Dennis woke up in a dark circular room. He looked around with wide eyes, fear filling him.

Then he heard a scream.

He jumped back from the sound, finding a small round window on a door.

He stood and hurried to the door and tried to open the door. Locked. He looked out the window and his eyes widened in shock.

Across the room was a woman hanging facing a wall, her feet just barely sweeping the floor. Wearing only a pair of dirty sweat pants, a cloth of some kind around her neck, her back bare to him. The same woman was standing next to her, a stern look upon her face. There was a man off to the side.

"Now," the stern woman said, "I will ask you again. Where is he?"

The woman hanging said nothing. The stern woman turned to the man and nodded. Dennis watched with shocked eyes as that man stepped forward with a whip in his hand. He flicked the whip sharply and hit the woman, who let out another scream. Dennis watched blood drip from her fresh wound at the strike.

It was at this moment that he realized that this was just one of many marks on the woman's back.

"Now, let's try this again. Where...is...he?"

The woman hanging didn't answer, not once during the remaining hour that this continued. Dennis' fear continued to grow at watching this. What would they do to him?

Finally the woman must have passed out from the pain and they released her from the wall, forcing her arms back into a tank top and covering her wounds. The top instantly became dark with the blood from her wounds.

They dragged her and laid her against the wall before lifting her arms and chaining her to the wall.

The stern woman turned back and looked over at Dennis, her eyes filled with hate. He tried to control them, but found that somehow he could not reach them. They had him trapped and he couldn't get out. Dennis took a few steps back and sat back on the ground, hoping that woman would stay away from him.

He didn't know who these people were, but he couldn't control them to release him. Fear filled him. Would they hurt him like they did that woman? Would they do something worse to him?

He shouldn't have ran away. He should have stayed at home and talked to his parents, talked to Papa Drac.

He wrapped his arms around his legs and placed his head on his knees, then he started to cry.


	7. Escape

Slowly Kate awoke, pain radiating through her body. She lifted her head and glanced across the room. She was surprised that they had chained her against the wall instead of locking her in the circle dark room that had been her prison cell these last 6 months.

Then she saw a little head pop up in the small window for the room and realized that she was keeping her separated from whoever that was in there.

She started to look down again when her eye that wasn't swollen widened in surprise. She looked back up at that small face and felt fear fill her as she recognized that face.

The young boy at the hotel, the one she thought had been Dracula's son, his grandson. She recognized that curly red hair and bright blue eyes.

Her heart pounded as she looked across the room at him. What was he doing here? They must have caught him somehow. If so, then why did they keep asking her where Dracula was?

They must have seen him do something that clued them in that he was a vampire. He must have been caught far from the hotel and they may not realize his relation to Dracula. They still needed her to get to Dracula directly.

She had to get him out of here before they realized his signficance.

She started to wiggle, trying to get out of the chains. Her whole body ached and she was sure that there wasn't a single area of her not covered in blood. Still she struggled.

She felt her wounds on her wrists split open again and the blood start to leak back out, but she didn't stop.

She had to get that kid out of here. Based on the way her aunt treated her, her own family and a fellow Van Helsing, she knew that the boy wouldn't survive long. She couldn't allow that happen.

Not another monster would die by a Van Helsing's hands if she could help it.

After what felt like forever she finally felt it. Her hands were slipping through the metal cuff. Despite the pain she kept struggling.

She almost cried out in relief when she felt her left hand slip through the cuff. She didn't, but instead focused on her right hand. After a few more minutes she felt that hand slip free too.

She took a moment to stretch her shoulders before started to stand. It had been months since she had been standing, but she used the wall to help her unsteady legs become a bit more steady before she started slowly across the room.

Her head was swimming and she knew that the blood loss she had endured over these last 6 months would be affecting her, but she had a mission and she wasn't going to stop. Dracula would not lose another family member, even if she had to die in the process.

When she finally reached the room the boy was in, she started unlocking all the locks that had been attached to the door. She moved as quickly as she could despite the pain.

A pair of blue eyes peaked out from the small window, but she didn't glance up. She had to get these locks opened before her aunt returned.

When the last lock finally clicked and released, Kate grabbed the door and pulled with all her strength. The door weighed a ton, or at least felt that way. Despite the weakness in her limbs, Kate forced herself to keep pulling.

When the door swung open enough, the boy rushed out and Kate released the door, falling to the dirty floor with a thump. Her back screamed in pain and she felt more of her wounds open and begin to the bleed anew. She wanted to scream, but only allowed a low moan to escape.

"Hello?"

She turned and looked at the red-headed boy. His blue eyes reminded her so much of Dracula. She pushed that thought aside, there would be time for that later. She forced herself to sit up.

"I'm Kate," she said softly. "I'm gonna help you get out of here."

"I'm Dennis," he said, hope shining out from his eyes. She could see the fear in his posture, but she reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder, ignoring the Van Helsing warning system screaming at her to attack him. She would not give into that feeling, not ever. "You'll be home soon. I swear it to you."

He nodded his understanding and she nodded back before forcing her body to stand. She lead him to the only way out of the basement of her aunt's cottage. She prayed that everyone was out like they normally were during the day. She prayed that her time spent down here hadn't disrupted her concept of day and night. She opened the door and they walked out slowly.

It was silent and she had never loved silence so much. She gestured to Dennis to follow and the two walked out of the basement.

They started towards the back door of the house to avoid anyone coming in from the front, every second still in the house was another second they could be caught. The hallway was nothing but glass cabinets, filled with the trophies of monsters defeated and outdated monster hunting weapons. Kate had always thought it was creepy, but now she looked at these walls and was filled with disgust.

Dennis moved closer to her as he looked at the walls, obviously scared. She reached back and placed a hand on his head gently. She gave him a small smile before turning and walking farther down the hallway.

At the end she stopped and glanced around the corner into the kitchen, praying it was empty. It was, relief filled her briefly.

As she turned back to Dennis a flash of something caught her eyes from the cabinet across from her.

She blinked and looked at the cabinet carefully.

Inside, nestled between an old crossbow and a golden cross, was a small golden ring. She narrowed her eyes. This ring was familiar to her.

"Kate?"

She turned to Dennis who was looking up at her with confusion. As she looked at Dennis' blue eyes, she thought of Dracula. She turned back to the ring with wide eyes.

That ring...it was a carbon copy of the one Dracula wore. That could only mean that this was his wife's ring. Now that she knew the story was true, she felt hatred for her family fill her. This ring shouldn't be kept here as a trophy of a defeat, it should be returned to the owner.

She moved and opened the cabinet, grabbing the ring. She turned back to Dennis and knew that he would need to take this ring back to his grandfather. She reached at her waist and pulled the string out of her sweat pants. It was covered in blood, but it would have to do. She looped the ring on the string and wrapped it around Dennis' neck.

"Take this to your grandfather," she said quickly. "Please don't lose it. It's important."

Dennis nodded his understanding with wide eyes and Kate nodded back before taking his hand and moving towards the back door.

She looked out at the sunlight and then back at Dennis. He would burn if they went out without coverage. She glanced around before seeing her cousin, Jacob's large hoodie on the back of a chair.

She grabbed it and threw it over Dennis, pulling the hood over his head. "It's sunny, keep the hood up until we reach the tree line."

She turned back and swung open the door before grabbing Dennis' hand and running out into the sunlight.

Every step was painful, her body wanted to quit, to stop and fall, ignoring the danger. Kate wouldn't let it. She forced herself to keep running, the hand in her own the one thing reminding her just what was at stake if they stopped.

Dennis ran behind her across the back yard and through the short fence she had there. They ran across the large field, their focus on the trees on the other side. She ran faster than she thought she could as injured as she was. Dennis kept up with her as they kept running.

When they broke the treeline, both moved back farther into the forest before she stopped him and took several breaths. Dennis looked back the way they had run before uncovering his head in the safety of the shade.

"We made it," he said softly before turning to Kate. "Thank you."

"It's nothing," she said before standing straight and looking up at the sky. "Now to get you home."

She located the sun through the leaves and let out a breath. "Okay," she said, turning back to Dennis. She pointed in the direction opposite of the setting sun. "That direction," she said. "Go in the direction of the rising sun. Don't look back and don't stop until you are walking back into the hotel. Take that ring to Dracula."

"What about you? Aren't you coming with me?"

She shook her head. "I'm going to go in the opposite direction. If they start looking for us, I need to give them a trail to follow away from you." Dennis opened his mouth to say something but she shook her head again. "If they find me nothing will change. If they find you...they will find your family. You have to continue home alone. Can you do it?"

Dennis took a deep breath before nodding, his face filled with worry and fear. She smiled. "Good boy. Now go."

"Good-bye Kate.," he said before flipping the hood back over his head and taking off in the direction she had pointed, following her directions and not looking back.

Kate watched the boy run from her and let out a sigh. She watched until she could no longer see him before she turned and started running in the opposite direction, making sure to leave a trail in case they discovered the two escaped.

Let them find her, but not Dennis, not Dracula.

Pain radiated out from her body and her blood loss was starting to get to her, but she couldn't stop until she was sure that Dennis was far enough away to be safe, until she was sure he had made it back to his family.

That determination pushed her forward, away from Aunt Caroline's cottage of torture, away from the Van Helsings and away from Dracula.


	8. Return

It had been a week since Dennis had gone missing.

Mavis and Johnny were beside themselves with worry and Dracula was distracted.

It wasn't like Dennis to do something like this. He was a good boy and close with his family. He would never just run off like this.

Meaning that someone had to take him.

Dracula knew in his heart that it was the Van Helsings that had taken him. Kate had gone back to her family and told them about his family and about his hotel. He hated that he hadn't been able to kill her when he had the chance, avoided this whole situation. He blamed himself for this.

However, even as he thought this, he felt deep down that there was no way that Kate had betrayed his trust. He didn't know why he could think that when all evidence pointed to Dennis being kidnapped by her family.

He stood by the front desk and sighed, watching as his daughter and son-in-law came down the stairs slowly, her pregnant belly making it hard for her to move.

Her heart broke as he believed that he would never see his grandson alive again. Never see Dennis' curly red hair, see his excited blue eyes or hear him call out for him again.

"Papa Drac!"

Dracula blinked before turning to the sound, sure that he had misheard. Walking in the front doors, a small boy in an over-sized hoodie was running across the lobby. The hood fell back and Dracula couldn't help the relief that filled him at the sight of that unruly red hair.

"Dennis!"

Dracula flew across the lobby, grabbing the young boy in his arms. His shout had drew the attention of Mavis and Johnny, who joined him in hugging Dennis. For a moment, he just felt relieved that Dennis was alive and well.

Mavis was the first to pull back. "Where were you? What happened?"

Dennis looked down with an ashamed look on his face before he started to tell his story. How he had felt left out because of the new baby coming and everyone ignoring him so he had run away to find a new friend when he had been hit in the head and taken, locked up in the basement of a house.

"How did you escape?" Johnny asked, his hand on his son's shoulder.

"There was a girl there with me, she helped me. She looked like she had been there a lot longer than I had and they had hurt her. She saved me."

Dennis pulled the hoodie off of him, leaving him in the t-shirt and shorts he was wearing when he disappeared a week ago, except for a piece of string around his neck.

"What that?" Mavis said pointing at the string.

Dennis followed his mother's finger. His eyes widened and he pulled the string over his head and put it into his hands, holding it out to Dracula.

"She told me to give this to you. Made me promise to give it to you."

Dracula reached out and took the item from Dennis' hands, looking over what he had given him.

It was a gray colored string, covered in dirt and what looked like red jam, but that wasn't what drew Dracula's eyes.

Looped on the string, was the pair to the ring he was wearing. Martha's ring. His eyes widened in shock.

"Where did you get this?"

"Kate gave it to me," Dennis said. "She took it out of a cabinet in the house."

Dracula looked up at Dennis at those words, shock filling him. "Did you just say Kate?"

Dennis nodded. "She helped me escape. She even pointed me in the right direction and told me to run. She took off in the other direction, said that it would give me time to escape." He turned to Mavis. "I hope she is okay. She wasn't doing so well when I left her."

"What do you mean?"

Dennis turned back to Dracula, his wide eyes filled with sadness. "She was bleeding, but she was trying to hide it from me."

Dracula looked back at the string. It wasn't jam, it was dried blood, Kate's blood.

"Why was she bleeding?"

Dennis took a deep breath. "They were hurting her when I woke up. The mean lady kept asking her where he was. She never said anything. Her back was covered with cuts."

She hadn't said anything to her family. The Van Helsings had just gotten lucky when Dennis ran off, perhaps even unaware of his connection to Dracula. She had kept her promise, even at the cost of her own life. She was out there, bleeding, running, as a distraction for his grandson.

"Dennis, which way was the cottage?"

Dennis pointed out the hotel. "In the direction of the setting sun. It took me 2 days to get here on my own."

Dracula wasted no time. Placing Martha's ring in his pocket, he flew out of the front lobby doors out of the hotel, leaving behind 3 shocked faces.

* * *

Dracula didn't know what possessed him to find Kate, but he knew that he had to find her. Would she even still be alive? He didn't know, but he wasn't going to stop until he was sure.

He stopped when he reached the edge of the forest and could see what he assumed had to be the cottage Dennis told him about. He wanted to go there and take that revenge against the Van Helsings right this moment, burn their home to ground as they did his all those years ago.

Instead he turned and continued west.

Dennis' trail was more subtle, but Kate's wasn't. It looked like she had done it on purpose, maybe she had. She was trying to distract the Van Helsings from Dennis, so it made sense that she would make this trail more obvious.

If the trail hadn't been obvious, the blood trail would have guided him.

He could smell the fresh tainted human blood of the Van Helsing family, Kate's blood. He had to be getting close now.

He followed the trail quickly, looking for any sign of Kate. He couldn't believe how far the girl had run when injured. Based on this blood trail, she had to be bleeding pretty badly. He moved faster.

When he reached the end, he froze.

He was standing at the end of a ditch, and at the bottom was a body. He moved down and turned the body over carefully to see her face.

Kate.

Even covered in blood and dirt, he recognized her. Her eyes were closed and she was pale, even in the dark. He reached out and placed his fingers on her neck, checking for her pulse, hoping she was not dead.

The world stood still as he waited.

After what felt like an eternity, he felt her heartbeat. He almost cried out in relief, but didn't. Her pulse was weak, but it was there.

Carefully, he lifted her into his arms and turned towards home. It would take a little longer to get there since he couldn't transform, but he hoped that she would survive the journey.

* * *

Kate wanted to scream.

The pain had woken her from a deep sleep, although she felt anything but rested.

She kept her eyes closed against the pain. She didn't want to get up and try to run anymore, but she needed to do so. She hadn't gone nearly far enough. Dennis had to make it home to his parents, his grandfather, Dracula.

A new pain set in as she thought about the lonely Count Dracula. She had tried her best to forget him these last 6 months, but even now she knew the exact shade of blue his eyes were, feel the softness of his cape as it caressed her skin, the twinkle in his eyes when he had her trapped in a game of chess, the musical melody of his voice.

She had accepted long ago that she had fallen for the vampire, but she wasn't naive enough to believe that he would be interested in her except to hate her. She was a Van Helsing after all, that wasn't about to change.

She tried to move her arm and found that it hurt too much to move it more than an inch or so. Still she tried. She had to get moving off this mattress and keep...she froze.

Mattress? Last she remembered was falling into a ditch. She should still be there.

She forced herself to open her eyes and look around her surroundings.

She was lying on her stomach on a mattress. A soft, comfortable mattress with silky sheets, fluffy pillows and a warm comforter.

Without moving her head too much, she glanced around the room. Drapes hung around her bed and the walls were dark and made of stone. This room looked familiar.

She heard a door open, but heard no footsteps. Instinctively she knew who it was but she prayed that she was wrong, but also wanted to be right.

"Drac...ula?"

Her voice cracked slightly, indicating she hadn't spoken out loud in quite some time. She had run for nearly 2 days before she fell into the ditch. Who knew how long she had been out after that?

A body came into view suddenly and Kate found that she didn't even have the strength to jump in surprise. The body lowered and she found herself looking into those familiar blue eyes she had been dreaming about the last 6 months.

"It is you," she said softly, her voice cracking. "I would think I was dead if it wasn't for the pain I'm feeling."

"Be still now," he said, that voice washing over her like warm chocolate. He made to reach out and touch her, but pulled his arm back before making contact with her.

Kate almost flinched at the sharp pain his obvious rejection caused her.

"What happened?"

Dracula's eyes flickered away from hers. Gods she hated this. She hadn't asked to fall in love with a man still in love with his late wife, a man who hated her family, a man who would never be able to love her.

"Dennis said that you saved him from your family, that you were being..." He glanced at her. "...tortured."

Kate took a breath. "He told you that?" Dracula nodded.

Kate couldn't believe it. She never wanted Dracula to know. She never expected to see him again so he wouldn't need to know the depths she went to keep his location a secret from her family.

"How long were you there?"

Kate looked into Dracula's eyes. He was looking at her intently now. There was no point in trying to keep the truth from him. He already knew that she had been tortured.

"After I left here, I went to my aunt's home. She was the one who sent me out to Transylvania after all and she demanded I return to tell her what I found. I went back and for 2 days she kindly asked me where you were and for 2 days I replied that I didn't know. I told her that your village just enjoyed old legends and celebrated monsters every year as a result. On the 3rd day, as I was packing my bags to return to school, they got the jump on me and knocked me out. When I woke up, I was chained up in the basement, unable to escape. I've been there the last 6 months."

Dracula's eyes widened. "Why couldn't you escape? Van Helsings have similar abilities to other monsters. You could have run?"

"I may be stronger and faster than the normal human, but the chains were meant to hold monsters. I tried but couldn't break them."

Dracula narrowed his eyes at those words. She had been trapped and tortured for his whereabouts. She had been there for the last 6 months.

He thought back to when he last saw her. She had asked him to kill her to keep her from spilling his location. He hadn't been able to do so and let her go. Then her own family had hurt her, repeatedly, just to try and find him.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Kate blinked, confusion filling her features. "What?"

"Why did you keep my location secret? Why did you protect the hotel? Why keep quiet when speaking would end your suffering?"

Kate blushed. She couldn't very well tell him it was because she was in love with him. He wouldn't believe it.

"I promised you I wouldn't say anything," she said. "I always keep my promises."

* * *

Dracula wasn't sure what to think about Kate Van Helsing.

When he had brought her back, Mavis had helped him clean the wounds on her back. There were scars criss-crossing her back. She had been whipped, multiple times, over the course of her 6 month imprisonment.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing.

She protected the hotel and all the monsters here, even when being tortured by her own family. He didn't know of any monster or human who could have survived that long.

Mavis had been told the story, including the past between Dracula and the Van Helsings. However, she had pushed past the story and looked at Kate as the woman who saved her son. She wasted no time helping the Van Helsing girl.

"I hate the Van Helsings for taking my mother," she had said, "but Kate saved Dennis. She risked her life to keep us safe. I can see past her family to the woman she is inside."

Over the past week that Kate had been staying at the hotel recovering, Mavis spent a lot of time with the young woman, making sure she was eating and helping her regain her strength. The power of the Van Helsing family helping her recover much faster than a normal human would have.

Turns out that starving the girl was another tactic the Van Helsings tried with Kate to get her to break. She was much smaller than she was when she first came to the hotel indicating that they barely fed her the whole time she was trapped. To a girl whom he knew loved food, it had to be torture to live off barely anything for 6 whole months.

She was getting stronger each day she stayed at the hotel and her weight was coming back. She had even started to walk around the room and hallways. Today, she was joining Mavis and Johnny for dinner in the restaurant.

Dracula watched across the room as she slowly ate the food she had chosen. She had learned the hard way that because she hadn't eaten much over the last 6 months that she had to eat much slower and a little at a time.

She had more color in her face and her cheeks were starting to fill back out. She was looking alive again. She was smiling at something Johnny had said, Mavis was laughing too. Dennis ran up and joined his family, even taking a moment to hug Kate.

She was fitting in with his family. A Van Helsing fitting in with his family, it should have bothered him, but it didn't.

He didn't understand. He looked down at the ring he had kept in his pocket. Martha's ring.

She had stopped and taken time to recover this ring, knowing that if she had been caught that she would have done everything she could to get Dennis out, but still allowed herself to be caught.

He felt strange that he was feeling this way about someone from the family that killed his wife, his zing. Somehow, he found that he liked Kate, but even that didn't seem like a strong enough feeling for what this was.

He curled his hand around Martha's ring, finding himself somewhat torn as he watched Kate interact with his family. Her eyes lit up and laughing at something Johnny had said.

What was this feeling?


	9. Recovery

Kate was feeling so much better than she had since waking at the hotel almost a month ago. Mavis and Johnny were a lovely couple and Dennis was a sweet young boy. She enjoyed spending time with them as she healed.

The one person she wished she had seen more of was Dracula.

He seemed to be avoiding her over this last month. Since he came to talk to her on the day she awoke, she had only seen him a handful of times and almost always from afar.

She understood. This was an exception, a kindness he extended her for saving Dennis' life. She still didn't understand why he had bothered to come after her. Dennis was safe, so he should have left her in the ditch he found her, he should have let her die.

But knowing that he came after her filled her with such happiness even if she knew it wouldn't last.

She was wandering the hotel today alone, trying to remember the way to that small library he had shown her during her last visit to the hotel. It was the place she had fallen in love with him after all and she wanted to see it again. She wandered the hallways, only running into dead ends a couple of times.

She never imagined that this hotel would be this large. Of course, she knew it was large, but it seemed so much bigger inside than the outside made it appear. One could get lost very easily here.

Then, after a couple of hours searching, she stopped in front of a door she recognized. She reached out and opened it, walking right into the small library she had been searching for. She smiled.

She walked into the room and sat in front of the fire, letting the colors flicker from the flames. She leaned back and let the warmth flow over her. Her eyes glanced over at the chess set, sitting ready for another match.

She smiled sadly, remembering the last time she and Dracula had played together, before all the drama and hatred had come, before either one knew who the other was. Before she realized her feelings for him.

Things had been simpler then.

Then, suddenly, she froze. Her body recognizing that she wasn't alone, that a monster was in the room with her.

She hadn't felt that feeling of dread, the Van Helsing warning system, since she came to the hotel. She knew it was due to the blood loss and torture she had endured. The fact that it had returned meant that she was mostly healed, if not completely.

She stood and turned to see Dracula walking into the room. He froze at the sight of her, his blue eyes wide. A sharp pain went through her at his shocked look. He hadn't expected to find her here. Perhaps she was intruding in a space she shouldn't be anymore.

"Count Dracula," she said firmly. "I'm sorry. Should I not be here?"

He blinked before relaxing. He gave her a small smile. "No, you are welcome here," he said before stepping forward and standing next to her. "If fact, I think that you owe me a game." He took a seat and gestured to the chess board between the two chairs. "Shall we?"

Kate smiled before retaking her seat, confusion filling her. "Of course Count," she replied, happy to once again play this game with him even if it didn't make any sense.

He smiled at her before they started their game, even though hearing her state his title made him feel terrible, as if they were not equals.

They played two games, Dracula winning both, before starting a third. They didn't talk much during the games, instead focusing on the game, but Dracula did look up at Kate as she worked through her moves.

Her emerald green eyes were focused on the board, working out her next move. Her red hair was flowing about her face, framing the heart-shaped face. Her lips were full, she bit the bottom one slightly in concentration. She was looking much better than when he had found her lying in that ditch a month ago.

She was a beautiful girl. For a moment, Dracula wondered if her skin was as soft as it looked, if her hair was as smooth as it appeared, if her lips would taste as sweet as he imagined. It was unnerving to have these thoughts.

The thoughts caused him to make a mistake in his next move, one he wouldn't have made otherwise. He was embarrassed that he could not control his thoughts to concentrate on the game.

Kate smiled and Dracula felt the urge to reach out and touch her, but he didn't. These feelings made no sense. As nice as the girl was, as kind and honest as she had been towards him and his family, she was still a Van Helsing.

She reached out and picked up a piece. Her hands were small with clean-cut fingernails. She didn't wear any of that polish on them. He liked that about her. She didn't wear any of that make-up that most women wore, no perfume, no polish, she was natural.

She moved and those sparkling green eyes looked up at him. Dracula felt the shock inside him at that look. He didn't know what it was that he was feeling, but it was something he had never felt before, not even with Martha.

"Checkmate," she said, her smile widening.

He looked down at the board. Checkmate. He had been distracted by looking at Kate.

He glanced back up at her. She had such a look of satisfaction, at defeating him in this game. He chuckled.

"You finally defeated me," he said with a smirk. "Maybe I made it too easy?"

She rolled her eyes, still smiling. "Don't play that way. I beat you fair and square."

"So you did," he said standing. "It's late, you should sleep." He reached a hand out to her.

She looked at the hand he offered in confusion before she reached out towards him. However, before she could place her hand in his she stopped and pulled it back. Dracula watched as she held her hand against her chest before standing on her own.

She refused to touch him. For some reason, that really bothered him. Instead, he didn't dwell on it and put his hand back by his side, his fingers itching for any contact from her.

They walked the hallways back to her room, his cape flowing out from behind him. There was silence between them, but the air was charged in a way it never had been before with them.

Something was different, they both knew it. What it was, they didn't know.

Kate glanced at Dracula from the corner of her eye. He was handsome and regal, of course he is a count. When he had offered her his hand to help her up, she really wanted to take it. However, she knew that if she touched him, her already awkward feelings would become stronger. It was already hard enough keeping her cool when around him now.

She knew that there was no way the two of them would ever end up together, but she couldn't help wishing for it. With him so close and being so kind, it only made it worse. She half wished that he would kill her just so she wouldn't have to feel this anymore.

"I have been meaning to ask you," he said when they reached her door causing her to look up at him, "why did you take the time to return this to me?"

He pulled something out from his pocket and showed it to her.

She looked down and gasped. Martha's ring. Dennis had done as she asked and returned it to Dracula. She looked back up at him with wide eyes before taking a breath.

"The ring was your wife's, meaning that it should be with you. It belongs to you, not the Van Helsings. I had a feeling that you were missing it."

"Won't they realize you took it?"

Kate nodded. "I'm sure that they made that connection immediately. Of course, by taking the ring they have to know that I actually found you and was keeping it from them."

He wrapped his hand around the small ring that had caused Kate's life to twist around. "You mean that you can never go back to the Van Helsings?"

She looked away from him towards the door. "Aunt Caroline took me in when my parents died in a car accident. I owe her my life, but after what happened...I could never return there."

"You could stay here."

She whipped back to him with wide eyes. "What?"

Dracula's eyes were wide, as if he hadn't realized what he had said. "Um...I said...I said that you could...stay here...?" Dracula found that he liked the idea of Kate remaining in the hotel, even if the reasoning behind that happiness confused him.

Kate blinked. That sounded wonderful, staying in the hotel that her beloved ran. She wanted so badly to say yes, to stay in this fantastic hotel with him, forever.

But, she glanced at his clenched fist, the ring she knew was housed inside. Even if she stayed her feelings would never be returned. She would live her entire life in love with a man she would never be able to be with. He would always love his wife.

She smiled. "I appreciate the office," she said before turning back to her door. "I'll think about it. Good-night."

She opened the door and stepped inside, glancing back at him once before she finished shutting the door. She didn't allow the tears to fall until the door was completely shut.

How could she remain her, in love with a vampire, knowing that she would never have his love returned to her? She couldn't. It would destroy her from the inside out.

Dracula didn't know, he was just trying to be nice. Another hand-out to the woman who rescued his grandson she was sure.

She turned to the room and looked out the window at the rising sun. The warmth washed over her and she knew what she had to do.

* * *

Dracula awoke the next night well rested. He hadn't slept like that in what felt like forever.

He stood and dressed before heading out into his hotel. Monsters and humans were walking about this evening, checking out everything and anything. The breakfast buffet was in full swing and everything was going smoothly.

Right up until Dennis ran up to him, panic and tears in his eyes.

"Papa Drac! It's Kate. She's gone!"

Dracula looked at his grandson with shock. "Gone? What do you mean gone?" His own body filled with panic at those words. He had just spoken to Kate last night. She had nowhere to go so why would she leave?

Without waiting for Dennis to explain, Dracula turned and practically flew to Kate's room, not bothering to knock.

The bed was made and hadn't been slept in, the drawers were empty and there was a note on the side table. He picked it up and opened it.

The letter was addressed to Mavis, as she must have expected Dennis to go to his mother instead of him. He didn't care and read it anyways, pain filling him with each word.

'Mavis, please forgive me for leaving so suddenly, but I do not belong here. As a Van Helsing, I would never truly be welcome in a world of monsters. The longer I stayed, the more monsters would refuse to return to the hotel. The Van Helsings were monster hunters, not just vampire ones, and are hated by most monsters because of what we have done in the past.

'I will keep the hotel a secret until I die, this I can promise both you and your father of. I am ashamed that my family caused so much suffering to you both and I cannot make it right.

'Take care of each other. Kate.'

Dracula lowered the note before letting it fall to his feet. He wanted to believe it wasn't true, that it was all a dream, but he knew that it wasn't.

Kate had left the hotel for the second time. This time, he was sure she would not return.


	10. The Ancient

4 months later...

Kate loved working in this small diner, hidden away from the world. The townspeople were kind and no one questioned her about her past, not even the owner Amelia, an older woman with a kind smile.

She told everyone her name was Smith, to distance herself from the unsavory Van Helsing name. In the short travels she found that Van Helsing was a name even known among humans, and not in a favorable light. She only wished she could remove that connection from her own blood.

"It's been almost 4 months since you came here, my dear,"Amelia said to her as they were closing the diner, taking a moment to wave at the last of the diners leaving for the evening. "Don't you miss your family?"

"I don't have a family," Kate said, as she refilled the sugar containers for the morning. "It's just me." It was true. As far as she was concerned, the Van Helsing family was no family of hers. She was alone.

Amelia glanced at her from the corner of her brown eyes, a knowing look. Amelia always had a way of looking at her that make Kate feel as if she could read her soul.

"I'm pretty sure that isn't true," she said before turning back to wiping down the counter top. "Sometimes you get this look in your eyes as if longing for something more, or someone."

Kate blushed as she continued to fill the containers. "There is no one," she said firmly, even as Dracula's face filled her mind. She knew that it would take a long time to get over Dracula, but that was all she could do.

Kate didn't notice when Amelia's gray hair started to change to blonde, or that the wrinkles on her face started to smooth out. She was focused on her task, trying to remove Dracula from her memories.

It wasn't until she turned that she noticed that the elderly Amelia had transformed into a younger Amelia. She gasped and dropped the sugar container she had been holding, spilling sugar across the floor.

"Amelia?"

Amelia nodded. "Yes, my dear."

Kate didn't understand. If Amelia was a monster her Van Helsing warning system would have alerted her to her presence. She didn't feel it at this moment. So just who was Amelia? "What's going on?"

Amelia stepped forward until she was only a few feet from the other woman. "Kate Van Helsing." Kate gasped at the sound of her real name. How did Amelia know? "I have been waiting to see you for over 100 years, ever since your great-grandfather stepped into my cave that fateful night."

Kate narrowed her eyes before the realization washed over her. "You're the Ancient being that cursed my family," she said in shock. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Amelia laughed. "At the time, Ludwig wouldn't have called it a curse, but an advantage. He would be rolling over in his grave if he knew that his descendant thought it a curse instead."

"But, because of this 'gift' you gave him, Dracula lost his wife, his true love."

Amelia nodded. "That was unfortunate, but necessary." Amelia didn't look saddened by that thought, which only angered Kate.

Kate narrowed her eyes. "Necessary? He lost the woman he loved, grew to hate humans and the Van Helsings. Live his life all alone! How is that necessary?"

Amelia smiled, unfazed by Kate's anger. "Dracula already distrusted humans before his wife was killed. Martha, his wife, and himself planned the hotel idea long before she was killed. He built it as a tribute to her, to protect the child he had with her. His daughter, Mavis."

Kate felt her heart break at those words. No wonder the hotel was so beautiful, it reminded him of his wife. He forever would live in the hotel that he built for Mavis, to protect his love's beautiful child.

"She should never have died," Kate said softly. "Dracula deserves happiness."

Amelia smiled before stepping forward and placing a hand on Kate's shoulder, drawing the woman's eyes to her own.

"I once told Ludwig that his path of hatred would lead here," she said. Kate blinked. "You are in love with Dracula."

Kate took a step back. Thinking it herself was one thing, hearing it out loud was another. "I...I..."

Amelia raised a hand, stopping the woman from speaking. "I knew that one day it would happen. As I told Ludwig on that faithful day. 'One of your own will yield to Dracula and lead to the...'"

"Destruction of the Van Helsing line," Kate interrupted. "I've heard this story a million times since I came into Aunt Caroline's home."

Amelia smiled. "Yes, and you are the one I spoke of. You yielded to Dracula by keeping him safe and going against your family, because you love him."

Kate took a step back. "But I will not be the end of Dracula or the Van Helsings. How could I?"

Amelia lifted her hands and held them out to Kate. Kate looked at the woman's hands. A flash and suddenly an orb appeared in the woman's hands. "Watch, the fate of the one you love should you do nothing."

Dracula's face appeared in the orb before her and Kate gasped. His eyes were narrowed and he was glaring at someone. The orb swirled and showed a different view.

Dracula was standing in front of Mavis, who was holding a baby, Johnny and Dennis. He was glaring at the entire Van Helsing family, armed with monster hunting gear.

She watched her Aunt Caroline lift her weapon and fire stakes at him. Dracula was able to dodge the first stake, but not the second. It hit him in the chest and he fell to his knees.

"No!" Kate whispered before reaching out towards the orb. Her hand went right through the orb, but the image didn't vanish. Dracula's eyes looked up with wide surprise before he fell to the ground.

Kate fell to her knees, tears falling from her eyes, but she didn't make a noise.

"Kate."

She looked up at Amelia with red-rimmed eyes. "How do I save him?"

Amelia smiled at the girl.

"There was a reason you were born. When Ludwig asked me for the ability to defeat his enemy, I saw you in the future, standing by Dracula, against his enemies. You were a Van Helsing that would love him, who would give him what he needed. You are the only one who can stop his death at the hands of the Van Helsings.

"In Dracula's possession is a ring, one that you provided to him."

Kate blinked. "His wife's ring? What about it?"

Amelia lifted her hand and showed her another orb. In it, Kate watched Dracula tell a black haired woman holding a baby to hide and he would take care of this. Her eyes widened as she realized that this was Dracula's wife. This was the day she died.

She hid the baby before a man moved at unreal speed. From portraits around Aunt Caroline's home she recognized the man as Ludwig Van Helsing. He sneaked up on the mother before stabbing her with a stake. She screamed before falling to the ground. The castle was burning.

The image flickered to the ring in Ludwig's case, the ruby sparkling. Inside the ruby she blinked as she saw a woman's face appear inside the ruby. Dracula's wife.

"Martha, Dracula's wife, has part of her power trapped within the ring." Kate looked up at Amelia with wide eyes. She lowered her hand and the image faded away. "Only a Van Helsing who was in tune with her feelings could harness it to defeat the Van Helsing family. The love she felt for her husband, a mutual love for the vampire, Dracula."

Kate's eyes widened. "Martha and I could share power to save Dracula from death?" Kate started to breath heavily before she jumped to her feet. "I have to go!"

She started to run around the counter when Amelia grabbed her arm and held tight, forcing the girl to look back to her. Her eyes were firm as she spoke to the young Van Helsing woman.

"Be warned child, for this path comes at a price. The only way to truly save Dracula and his family is to eliminate the entirety of the Van Helsing family. No one can be left behind."

Kate didn't hesitate. "The Van Helsing family has killed enough monsters, it ends with me. I will not allow another Van Helsing child to be born to harm Dracula or any other monster."

Amelia's eyes widened as she looked at this Van Helsing girl. Her straight red hair was pulled up in a messy ponytail and her emerald green eyes were glowing. She understood what would need to be done, Amelia just didn't expect her to accept that so quickly. Interesting...

She released the girl's arm and watched as she wasted no time running out the front door, tossing the apron as she went.

Amelia looked at where the young woman had disappeared. Perhaps Kate's feeling for Dracula were stronger than she originally anticipated? Love was often unpredictable.

She waved her hand and cleaned the diner quickly before walking out the front door. She placed a closed sign on the door before locking it behind her and walking away.

The citizens of the town would be disappointed tomorrow when they were unable to get into the diner, but Amelia had to be there to see how this all played out.

How far would Kate Van Helsing go to save Dracula, a vampire?


	11. The Showdown

Kate climbed off the bus in the village near Dracula's hotel. She tossed her backpack over her shoulder and started through town. Her senses sharp.

It was eerily quiet versus the last time she had been here, too quiet for this early in the evening. She glanced around and just knew that something was wrong.

She took off, running as fast as she could towards the hotel. The other Van Helsings were fast, but being the youngest and direct descendant she could outrun them easily.

The trees flew past her as she ran, through the cemetery. She dashed past the tombstones and towards the hotel. She knew there was another way in other than the front door, she had heard Mavis tell her about it before. She just had to find it.

She paused on the edge closest to the hotel. The sun was setting, but she knew that wouldn't stop her family. They would continue until they reached Dracula. Their hatred was that strong.

She stopped fully and took a few deep breaths, looking up at the castle that housed the hotel. She then turned her head and looked up at what appeared to be a cave in the mouth of a face. She didn't know why, but she knew that the mouth would lead her to inside the hotel. She looked around before taking off inside, praying that she was right.

There was a tunnel that wound around multiple times, went upstairs and then downstairs. After what seemed like hours, she finally reached a door.

She opened it and found herself looking at a ladder attached to the inside of the hotel building wall. She blinked in confusion before climbing the ladder to a latch. She popped it open and suddenly she was on the roof.

"Great," she said to herself sarcastically as she stepped out onto the roof. She climbed up the rooftop and looked out over the horizon. She gasped at the gorgeous view.

She could actually see the village from here and beyond. It was incredible. The sky seemed to go on forever as well, with millions of stars. She wished that she had more time to enjoy it, but she had to find a way inside.

She started moving around, hoping to find another entrance since she knew the way that she had come only would take her back out, but she had to be careful not to fall as well.

Then she felt it, the feeling of fear and the feeling of elation. That could only mean one thing.

"Kate?"

She turned and Dracula was standing only a few feet from her. His blue eyes sparkled in the moonlight and her heart skipped beat at the sight of him.

It had only been a few months, but she had missed him, more than she had thought. How could she think that she could just get over him. She would never be able to do that.

"Dracula..."

He moved closer to her, moving so smoothly across the rooftop that she was sure that he was floating. He stopped a few inches from her, close enough that his cape caressed her fingertips, sending tingles up her spine.

"You're back," he said softly. "I didn't think you would return when you left again."

"I didn't plan on it, but..." she licked her lips and his eyes flickered there, causing an intense desire to flood her veins.

His eyes flipped back up to hers and were glowing a soft blue. Her heart thumped in her chest so hard she was sure he could hear it. Was he trying to seduce her?

"But?"

Her mind was blank. She couldn't remember the reason she had returned to the hotel. All she could think about was how much she wanted this man to kiss her, take her and possess her.

"But...I..." Why had she returned?

He moved closer to her, his body was almost touching hers. Her skin flushed and heat was flooding her veins. She had never felt like this before, so charged. He had never stood this close to her before. It was driving her insane.

"Kate," he said her name low, soft, in that accent.

She wanted him to touch her, right now. It was almost painful.

He was moving in closer to her, slowly. Her brain wasn't keeping up with the events, it had shut down. All she wanted was him.

"Kill the monsters!"

Both blinked, the moment broken, and turned to look down at the entrance to the hotel. A large group of humans, armed with weapons were walking up the entryway to the hotel. Her eyes widened in shock before she turned to Dracula, her mind now clear.

"It's the Van Helsings," she said firmly. "They found you."

He turned from the Van Helsings below to the Van Helsing before him. His eyes narrowed before he reached out and grabbed her arm. His eyes now glowing red.

His grip was tight on her, almost painful. "Dracula?"

"You told them, you brought them here."

She shook her head, hurt that he would believe this of her. "No! I came to warn you, to stop them."

Before her eyes, he transformed into a bat and grabbed the back of her shirt, carrying her into the air. He took her to a small balcony, dropping her.

She landed on the balcony hard, falling to the ground. He transformed next to her and walked into the room, ignoring her as he went. She stood slowly, pain flaring up her leg from her hard fall.

"Stay here," he said, his voice cold, like it had been the first day he discovered who she was. "I will deal with you once I am finished with your family."

She looked up into a large room and watched Dracula move across the room and out the door. She jumped up and ran to the door, barely reaching it before it closed.

"Dracula! Please listen!"

He glared at her and she pulled back, her heart breaking at the sight of the anger on his face. He didn't trust her and he wouldn't listen now.

"Stay...Here..." he said firmly before slamming the door in her face and locking it.

Kate moved to the door. "Dracula, please believe me! I didn't say anything!"

She felt the feeling of fear leave her and she knew he was gone. Tears filled her eyes as the memory of that image of Dracula being killed washed over her. She had to get out of this room. She turned to explore in hopes of finding something to help her get out.

She froze at the sight of the room she had ignored in her rush to stop Dracula.

There was a coffin in the middle of the room, leaving the room otherwise bare. However, there was a large portrait on the wall of Dracula and Martha, obviously in love.

She stepped forward and looked up at Martha. She was beautiful. It was no wonder Dracula had fallen in love with her. She was standing under the portrait when she noticed the small table, upon which sat a single candelabra and a ring.

Martha's ring!

Kate rushed over to the table and picked up the ring. This was the item she needed to stop the Van Helsings and save Dracula.

She tossed her back pack to the floor and wasted no time placing the ring on her left ring finger. She felt a momentary wave of sadness that this wasn't a ring Dracula was giving her, but she pushed that aside. There were bigger issues here.

She then turned back to the portrait and took a deep breath.

"Martha," she said, her hand rubbing the unfamiliar piece of metal upon her hand, "I don't know if you can hear me, but please lend me your strength. Help me save your husband and your family. Help me to end the Van Helsings once and for all."

For a moment she felt nothing. She almost wanted to cry that nothing was going to help her, that Dracula was going to die. Then she felt an overwhelming wave of power flow into her. It was almost too much and yet she knew that it was Martha's power.

Her hair flowed with the power, removing the strands from the hair tie she had used to put it up. It flowed about her face, almost like fire. Her green eyes glowed bright as Dracula's would do from time to time.

She turned and walked to the door, reaching it faster than she thought possible. She reached out and grabbed the handle before pulling it, as if opening a regular door.

It flew off the hinges and across the room. Kate's eyes widened before she smiled, the power was there and it was working. Then she turned and walked out the door and down the hallway, leaving the room behind her.

She maneuvered the hotel as if she had built it, moving faster than she ever had before. The combined strength and speed of the Van Helsing/Vampire mix was almost overwhelming and intoxicating.

However, Kate's mission was clear and she couldn't become distracted. She needed to stop the Van Helsings from killing Dracula.

She turned and found herself looking out into the lobby. The Van Helsing family, lead by Aunt Caroline, stood on one side. Dracula stood on the other, his family behind him. The memory of the vision returned and when Aunt Caroline lifted the crossbow, Kate didn't hesitate.

She moved at lightning speed, turning the crossbow on her aunt and fired, directing the three stakes into her aunt's chest rather than across the room at Dracula.

Caroline raised her eyes in shock at Kate, as if surprised to see her. Kate felt a second of sadness for killing the woman who raised her, but a second was all she would spare for the woman who tortured her.

"Kate...how could...you?" Caroline fell to the ground, breathing no longer.

The remaining Van Helsings moved back, their focus now on her rather than the family of vampires on the other side of the room.

Kate snapped the crossbow in her hands like a twig and turned. The room gasped, monster and hunter alike.

Dracula's eyes were wide as he looked at her, as if unsure just what he was seeing. She looked like Kate, but then again she looked like something else. Her hair was flowing about her, like she was floating in water and her eyes were glowing.

"What the hell are you?" Kate narrowed her eyes at her cousin who had spoken, his words were venomous.

"The Van Helsings will not shed another drop of monster blood!" Kate said, only she spoke in 2 voices. One was clearly Kate's voice, but the other was one Dracula hadn't heard in over 120 years. Martha's voice. "I will not allow it."

Another stake flew towards her, but she grabbed it out of the air before flinging it back towards the one who fired it. The stake landed between the older man's eyes, killing him instantly.

She ran an eye over the entire Van Helsing gang before she moved.

She was faster than any monster Dracula had ever seen, including himself. The only way he could keep an eye on her was to follow her hair, flowing about the room through the Van Helsing group like fire.

One by one, the Van Helsings fell, blood staining the rugs as she went. When she stopped, she was back in the center of the lobby as the last Van Helsing body fell, each one now dead. Dracula looked about the room before slowly approaching the woman with her back to him, unsure what would happen now.

However, before he moved more than a couple of feet towards her, she turned, her glowing green eyes focused on him. It was intense and Dracula found that he could not look away. Her hands were covered in blood, as was her clothing. Still she was beautiful.

Then he watched as her hair started to settle and her glowing eyes started to fade. She seemed to split into 2 people.

His eyes widened as a second image formed next to her, floating out of Kate as if it was her spirit, only this was someone he recognized.

"Martha?"

The floating image materialized but was still see-through, like a ghost, a ghost of his late wife. Once the image of Martha materialized Kate feel to her knees, her hands lying in her lap palms up.

Kate looked at her bloodstained hands and felt tears fill her eyes. She didn't regret killing her family to save Dracula's, not one bit. However, it took a lot out of a person to kill people she had once considered her family, more than she had thought that it would.

Dracula's focus was on Martha, he barely registered the crying woman on the ground next to her.

"Hello Drac," Martha said softly.

Dracula looked at Martha with such sadness. "I miss you," he said stepping closer. "How are you here?"

Martha directed her attention to the woman next to her, causing Dracula to look down at her. Kate had tears running down her face, dripping onto her bloodstained hands.

"Kate Van Helsing," Martha said, drawing the young woman to look up at her. "She was the only one who was able to harness my power to defeat them."

Kate glanced at Dracula, who she just realized was standing before her. He was looking down at her now, confusion filling his features.

"Dracula..." Kate whispered, her heart starting to pound at the sight of him. Love flowing through her for him.

Dracula was looking at her with wide eyes before turning to Martha. Kate's heart froze. Why would he look at her when his wife was right there, even in a type of ghost form? How stupid of her.

She watched as Dracula and Martha moved to his family, introducing Martha to her grown daughter, her husband and their grandson. A happy family reunited.

Kate closed her eyes before forcing herself to stand. She would wait and see if she could wash the blood off before she vanished from their lives. Now that the Van Helsings were no longer a threat, Dracula could live his immortal life without fear.

There was no reason for her to ever see him again.

'Kill Dracula.'

Kate froze, her eyes widening. That wasn't her voice, or Martha's. That was a man's voice in her head, one she had never heard before.

'Kill Dracula, now!'

Kate took a step back at the horrific angry voice, even through it was in her head. "Who...?"

'Kill Dracula you foolish girl! While his back is turned!'

She glared at the thought. What was this? She took a deep breath before responding to the inner voice with her own.

'Who are you?'

She could feel the anger within her, filling her. It wasn't her anger, it was something else. What the hell was this?

'I am the head of the Van Helsing family, Ludwig Van Helsing! You will obey me, granddaughter!'

Kate's blood ran cold. Ludwig Van Helsing was in her head, demanding she kill Dracula. She took a deep breath. 'No, I will never kill Dracula.'

She felt the rage inside her. Suddenly her body moved on it's own and her eyes widened. She turned and walked to a nearby table, picking up a stake that was sitting there. 'If you will not, I will use you to do it.'

Kate forced herself to stay at the table, her body shaking against the force to hold herself in place. Ludwig was stronger than she anticipated, his anger stronger. Her grip on the stake tightened as she moved slightly to turn back around to Dracula, but she held herself in place, using every bit of her strength. She couldn't move from this table.

'It's no use girl,' she heard in her head. 'Eventually I will overpower you and kill Dracula once and for all.'

Tears fell down her cheeks. She couldn't allow Dracula to die. She wouldn't ever let anything harm him if she could avoid it. How could she stop Ludwig Van Helsing if he was in her head, if he was controlling her?

 _'The only way to truly save Dracula and his family is to eliminate the entirety of the Van Helsing family.'_

Amelia's words flashed through her mind and in that moment she understood. The Van Helsing family would always hunt down Dracula and other monsters because of Ludwig's hatred. Even if she fought it, eventually his hatred would overpower her and force her to do what he wanted.

Her eyes widened, more tears filling them and falling, as she realized there was only one way to stop Ludwig Van Helsing, to stop the hatred.

She had to destroy everyone in the Van Helsing bloodline. Everyone.

With the last bit of strength she had, she lifted her hand holding the stake, turned it and forced the stake into her own chest, letting out a scream at the impact.

Her scream drew the attention of everyone still standing in the lobby, including Dracula.

Kate watched as her own blood poured out of the wound, mixing with the blood she already had covering her. She turned to look at a shocked Dracula before she collapsed from the blood loss.

Dracula watched as Kate, blood pouring from her chest, fell to the lobby floor. As she did, a ghost figure remained standing, a figure he recognized.

"Ludwig Van Helsing..."

Ludwig glared at the girl, yelling but no one could hear him. He watched as the ghost turned to Dracula and started to yell at him before he tried to pick up a weapon. However, his hands just slipped through them. It was apparent to Dracula that even after death, Ludwig still hated him.

Dracula ignored the ghost before moving to Kate's side, kneeling down next to her. "Kate?"

Her eyes fluttered to him. "Drac..."

Blood was pouring out of her. "Why did you do this?"

"To protect...you..." she gasped out. "Ludwig...tried to...force me...kill you."

Dracula glanced at the obviously pissed ghost before looking back at Kate. His eyes ran over the stake in her chest. She wouldn't survive, there was no way she could. She had already lost too much blood and the wound was too deep. Pain filled him at the thought of her dying. She couldn't die.

"Drac?" He looked back into Kate's eyes. She was giving him a soft smile, a smile he knew he didn't deserve. "I love you."

His eyes widened at those words. Kate loved him? A Van Helsing loved him? He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say in response.

"Kate...I..." His mouth closed and then opened multiple times as he tried to speak.

"Shhhh," she whispered. "I know you don't feel the same, but I wanted you to know."

Her eyes were glazing over, she was fading. "Come on Kate," he said, his voice cracking slightly. "Hang on." He knew she wouldn't survive, but he couldn't stop himself from begging her to survive, to live.

"You don't have to worry anymore," she said softly. "The Van Helsing line ends with me. You're free."

She was so pale and Dracula reached out and touched her hand. She wasn't looking at him anymore, her eyes were unfocused.

"Kate...I..." Gods what did he want to say to her? Why couldn't he get the words out?

"I love you Dracula," she said in almost a whisper. "Be happy."

She took a breath, a second one that was shallower, then she stopped breathing. Her eyes were open, her once lively green eyes were dulled and vacant.

Kate was gone.


	12. Decisions

The lobby was silent, covered in blood and bodies. However, only one had a small crowd around it.

Kate was dead.

Dracula was still kneeling on the blood soaked floor, her hand in his own. He reached out and gently closed her eyes. Now she appeared to be sleeping, but Dracula knew that wasn't so.

"Dad." Dracula turned to his daughter, she was looking at him with sadness in her eyes. "I'm so sorry."

Dracula nodded before turning back Kate. "She sacrificed herself for us."

"For you." He looked over his shoulder at his transparent wife. She had her hand on his shoulder, but he couldn't feel it. "She loved you."

Dracula didn't know what to say. Kate had said that she loved him, but he didn't know how that was possible. She barely knew him and he had zinged in the past. He wouldn't zing again. It was impossible. She was a Van Helsing, meant to hate him and his kind. How could she be in love with him?

Dracula closed his eyes, his hand tightening on the still warm one of Kate's. This hurt, more than he thought it would. The Van Helsing line was gone, no more. They couldn't hunt down his family and friends anymore. Kate had given him that freedom.

But at what cost?

A gasp drew Dracula's eyes to his daughter, whose wide eyes were staring past him and at Kate.

Dracula turned back at the girl and saw that she was surrounded in a green light. His eyes narrowed in confusion. What the hell was this?

"I didn't really think she would be able to actually go through with it."

Kate rose into the air and was pulled across the room to a woman who was walking across the lobby. Kate stopped next to the woman, hovering in the air as if suspended by strings.

The woman had long blonde hair and pair of wise brown eyes. She was wearing a pair of shorts, a tank top, and combat boots. Her right hand was up and glowing the same shade of green Kate was.

"Who are you?" Dracula said standing, his blue eyes focused. He was not in the mood for plesantries.

The woman turned and glanced at Dracula and his family before smiling. "She was successful nonetheless." The woman walked forward, not caring about the blood that was coating the bottom of her boots. Kate moved with her, hovering just behind her. She stopped before Dracula, still smiling.

"My name is Amelia," the woman said. "I am the one who gave Ludwig Van Helsing his power."

Dracula glared at the woman, his anger rising. His eyes became rimmed in red, showing his barely controlled anger. "You gave him the power? He used it to kill my wife!"

Amelia glanced at the surprised Martha and then back at Dracula. "Yes, along with dozens of others. His hatred even caused the Van Helsings to fall."

Dracula's anger faded as his gaze moved to Kate. "Including Kate."

Amelia glanced at the woman suspended in the air next to her. "Unfortunately." She then glanced back at the vampire with a raised eyebrow and a sly smile. "However, I could bring her back."

Dracula's eyes flashed to Amelia, hope rising inside him. "You can? How?"

Amelia smirked before waiving her hand towards Kate. Instantly the blood washed away from Kate's body, the stake removed. Amelia glanced and saw a glint of gold off the girl's hand, Martha's ring. She glanced back at Dracula.

"I can do many things. As an Ancient being, I have the power to do almost anything anyone could desire," her gaze moved to Martha, "Including return your wife to you."

Dracula's eyes widened at those words. Was it possible? Could he have his zing back? He had been without her for so long, been so lonely. Could it be reversed even after all these years?

Martha floated forward with surprise, but hope, in her eyes. "But, I've been dead for over 100 years. How could you...?"

Amelia gestured to Kate. "Kate died wearing your ring, meaning the you two are still connected. As a result, I could make it so her body would become yours."

Dracula froze, his eyes narrowed. "And what would happen to Kate?"

Amelia shrugged, as if unconcerned about the outcome. "To bring back Martha it would have to be an equal trade. A life for a life. One body, one soul. Kate would have to be sacrificed for Martha to live."

Martha moved back, anger in her features. "That's hardly fair to Kate! How dare you give us hope and then dash it away!"

Amelia raised an eyebrow. "I'm not. You can be alive again, with your family. It would just mean letting Kate pass on. I mean, she is only being held her now because of this connection. Once broken her soul would be free to go on to the next plane of existence." Amelia turned to the still shocked Dracula. "The decision is yours to make."

Dracula looked at his wife, his zing. How could he not take this opportunity to bring her back into his life? He had been lonely for so long and now he had the chance to bring her back into his life, another chance at forever.

Then he turned to Kate, still floating in the air next to Amelia.

He wanted so much to hate her, just for her family, for Martha, but he couldn't. He just couldn't hate her. She was smart, kind and honest. She had taken abuse from her family to protect his own, saved his grandson, killed her entire family and even herself to protect his family.

He didn't hate her, couldn't hate her. He would even say he liked her, but even then that wasn't a strong enough word for how he felt. He knew that it was more than that, much more. He just didn't know what it was.

When he had believed she had betrayed him to her family, he had felt so hurt, so angry and so sorrowful. He had said some hateful things to her, refusing to believe what she was telling him, that she hadn't lied to him. Now he knew that she hadn't betrayed him, not once. Kate would never betray him, he was sure.

He felt guilty for even thinking for a second that she would.

Without realizing it, he had stepped closer to Kate. She was floating in the air, her feet hovering just above the floor. Her hair was floating about her face as if she was suspended in water, her eyes were closed and she was surrounded by the green glow of Amelia's power.

Although the blood had been washed away, he remembered the sight of her covered in blood, both from her family and her own.

She had sacrificed so much to protect him, bled to protect him more than once. She was loyal to him and his family over her own flesh and blood relatives.

She was also so smart. He could recall their conversations as she enjoyed the food in the hotel, the exact crease in her forehead as she concentrated on her next move in chess, her laugh when he said something funny. He didn't mind the quiet moments with her, taking him away from the hustle and bustle of the hotel, something he didn't even realize he wanted, that he was missing.

Her smile warmed him inside, her green eyes glowed when she laughed, her red hair sparkled in the firelight. She was attractive and he could admit that he lusted for her, but that couldn't be why he turned his back on his wife, his zing.

And yet...

He was so lost. This should have been an easy choice, a simple choice, but it wasn't.

* * *

Martha watched her husband as he seemed to think over this decision. She knew it wasn't easy. Trading one life for another never was.

From the moment Kate placed her wedding ring on her finger, Martha had been able to read Kate's feelings, her love for Dracula and her hope for his survival. She hadn't known that she would need to kill herself, hadn't known that Dracula would have to make this choice.

What she had known is that she would need to kill her family to save him, that by doing this she would be alone in the world, that Dracula would be safe but that she would probably never see him again.

Kate's love for Dracula was so strong that Martha was sure that Kate had zinged for Dracula, even though he would not be able to do so with her. You only zing once after all. Kate was in a heartbreaking dilemma, but she had walked into it all knowing that she would walk away with nothing.

Not even Dracula.

Martha glanced at her husband standing next to her. He was focused on Kate with such intensity that Martha was almost shocked.

Dracula had never looked at Martha in this way. They had had an easy love, a trust in the zing they felt for each other. Looking at Dracula now, she knew that he felt something more for Kate than even he realized.

Dracula couldn't make this decision, Martha knew this just by looking on his face. He was being pulled in two opposing directions. His faith in a zing that he had lost and something he felt for the Van Helsing girl who defied her family for him.

Martha knew what choice had to be made.

"Choose Kate."

Dracula blinked before turning to Martha with shocked eyes. She was smiling at him, that knowing smile she had when she knew something he didn't. She had had the same smile when she was pregnant and hadn't told him yet.

"What?"

"I said, choose Kate."

Dracula looked back at Kate and then at Martha. "But...how could I give up on my zing when I have another chance to be with you? You only zing once!"

Martha continued to smile, her heart light. "Yes," she said. "We zinged and you do only zing once. A zing is love at first sight. You fell for me at first sight and we grew that love over time. It was an easy, patient love that we both were comfortable in.

"But just because you've already zinged doesn't mean that you cannot fall in love."

Dracula almost took a step back at what those words implied. Him...in love...with Kate? Sure, he lusted after her, sure he enjoyed spending time with her, sure he liked being around her, but that couldn't mean he loved her...did it?

Dracula didn't know. The feelings he felt for Kate were so vastly different than the ones he had for Martha. It was impossible for him to believe that it was love.

Dracula looked back up at Kate and suddenly wished he could talk to her, but he was terrified to do so. She had said she loved him, something he had never expected. How could a person raised by his enemies to hate him claim to love him? He didn't know, he didn't understand.

He could still see the hole in her shirt where she had stabbed herself to stop Ludwig Van Helsing. He knew of the scars upon her back where she had been whipped by her own family for protecting his secret. He remembered how weak she had been when he found her in the ditch, how thin she was.

"Drac," he looked back at Martha with wide eyes, still reeling at her words, trying to understand them. "Don't hesitate. I've been gone for over a century and you have raised our daughter with such love and devotion all alone. You deserve happiness, but I don't think it is with me anymore." She moved forward and rested her hand on his, but he couldn't feel it. It was like she wasn't even there even thought he could see her and speak to her. "You were able to get over my death when you saw how happy our daughter was when she started her family. You've been over my death for a long time."

He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He had only been able to move on because of Mavis. Had he been alone he wasn't sure he could have survived. She was his zing, his happiness! How could she think it wasn't with her? But... to choose her would sacrifice Kate.

"Martha..." He wanted to talk to her, to tell her that things weren't what she thought, but he couldn't because he didn't know. His mind was a jumble as he tried to reason out who he should save, who would be lost.

Martha smiled at him softly before turning to Amelia. "Save Kate," she said firmly.

Dracula's eyes widened and he stepped forward. "Wait..." he said softly. "I still haven't decided."

Martha glanced back at him, that same knowing smile on her face. "I made it for you," she said. "You never took so long to make decisions before, and yet you aren't sure of this one."

Dracula felt panicked. It was true, he didn't know which one to chose, didn't know how to make this decision. He didn't want Martha to make it for him, but he didn't know what else to do.

Martha reached up and gently touched his cheek, again he didn't feel it. "My dear husband, you would never be able to make this decision." She chuckled. "Kate and I would be stuck in limbo forever if we wait for your decision."

She turned back to Amelia, her faze now firm. "Save Kate."

"Wait..." Dracula said weakly. Amelia's eyes glanced at Dracula then back to Martha.

"Do it," Martha said, "Now!"

Amelia nodded before waving her hand. Kate's body flinched before the green light surrounding her started to flash. Dracula stepped back as the light grew brighter, he watched as his wife smiled at him and Mavis. "I'll always be with you," she said before she vanished.

Dracula expected to feel saddened at her disappearance, but he wasn't. Instead he felt calm, as if Martha was finally at peace. He hadn't expected that feeling, expecting the same overwhelming loss he had felt when she died.

His gaze went to the woman floating in the air, the green magic flowing around her. Her color was back in her face, her hair was standing straight in the air, she was still hovering above the ground.

Then her eyes flew open.


	13. Awakening

Kate's eyes opened slowly and, at first, all she saw was green. How strange. She was sure that the afterlife would be more white. Too bad she couldn't tell anyone that it is actually green.

Then the green light around her faded and she found herself looking at Dracula, who was staring at her with wide eyes. Wait...

Kate blinked in confusion before she looked around the room. "What?"

The lobby of the hotel, still covered in blood and bodies. Dracula, his family and friends, standing there, staring at her.

She was still in the hotel, still standing where she and Martha had destroyed the Van Helsings, where she had...died?

She took a deep breath before looking down at her body. Her shirt was still covered in blood, a hole still showed from where she had stabbed herself in the chest, except there was no wound. There wasn't even a scar. Her body was cleaned of blood too, leaving only her clothes still covered in the red coloring.

She looked back up at Dracula with wide eyes. "How...?

A chuckle from behind her caused her to turn her wide eyes to see Amelia, in her old woman form, standing behind her. She appeared older looking than she had been before, but Kate didn't focus on that. "Amelia?"

The older woman nodded. "Welcome back Kate."

"Back?" She glanced back at the carnage of the hotel before refocusing on Amelia. "I don't understand. I killed myself to stop Ludwig. I was dead."

"I brought you back to life, at Martha's insistence."

Martha! Kate's eyes widened as she glanced around the room for the ghostly figure before focusing on the ring still on her finger. She removed it and held it in her hand for a moment.

There was no more light behind the red stone as there had been before. The ring just looked dull, as if the life was gone from it. She wrapped her hand around the ring before putting it in her pocket. "Where is Martha?"

Amelia took a seat, as if standing was suddenly too much for her. "Martha has finally found peace and has crossed over, along with all the other monster souls trapped within trophies in the Van Helsing households. You freed them all."

Kate stared at Amelia in shock. "I...I..."

Amelia smiled. "You did a wonderful thing." Amelia then let out a deep cough, her face going pale. Kate rushed forward and grabbed Amelia's hand, registering the coldness. "Amelia!"

Amelia took a shaky breath. "You know, I brought you back for me as well." Kate shook her head in confusion. "It was time I retired."

"Retired?"

This was spoken by Mavis, who had also rushed to Amelia's side at the woman's cough. Kate hadn't even noticed her until she spoke.

Amelia let out a series of coughs again before she relaxed. "Yes, retired. I've been the sole Ancient being on this planet from the beginning of time, and it's time I passed on." She turned to Kate with serious eyes. "You have ended the Van Helsing bloodbath that was keeping me here. Now I can pass on, but my power cannot. My power must remain on the planet." She reached out and touched Kate's hand. "I've passed my power to you."

Kate almost took a step back, but Amelia's hand was freezing and filled her with concern. "I don't know how to use your power," she said firmly. "You need it."

Amelia smiled as her skin and hair became gray, as if she was fading away. Kate's eyes filled with tears. "Amelia...?"

"You will learn how to control it," she whispered so softly that Kate almost didn't hear her. Amelia's eyes closed. "Trust it and the power will never steer you wrong. "

"Amelia...?"

The woman didn't respond. Amelia's chest rose once...twice...then stopped.

Kate froze, her eyes wide on Amelia's still softly smiling face. Then the body slowly faded and disappeared, as if she had never been. Kate still knelt there, staring at the empty chair, tears slowly running down her face.

"Kate?"

She turned to Mavis with saddened and lost eyes. Mavis moved closer to her before wrapping her arms around her. Kate wrapped her own arms around Mavis and couldn't stop herself from letting out a sob.

"It'll be okay." Mavis said softly. "It'll be okay."

* * *

Kate looked around the room she had come to know as her own since her first night in the hotel. After Mavis helped her stand, she took her upstairs to this room, giving her a nightgown to change into. The sun was up and everyone was exhausted from the roller-coaster of emotions the night had brought with it

Kate looked out the window at the bright sun and instantly went and closed the curtain, blocking out the light. She wasn't feeling sunny and she refused to believe the sun was out. She needed sleep.

She removed her bloodied clothes, removing the ring from the pocket of her jeans.

She looked at the golden ring, no longer a prison for Martha's soul. She would return the ring to Dracula after she got some sleep. After all, it still belonged to his zing, his wife, his love. It didn't belong to her, just like he didn't.

She went ahead and shut off the lights confirming the room would be dark enough for her needs. Barely any light entered the room from around the curtains, leaving the room with shadows and dark corners. Kate didn't care, the minimum lighting fitting with her mood.

Once out of her clothes, Kate went into the adjacent bathroom, the sudden brightness blinding her momentarily, and looked at herself in the mirror. She was surprised at the change a bit of magic could do for her.

Her hair seemed to shine, as did her eyes. Not in such a way that it would be considered unnatural, but just enough that it gave her a glow about her. Her skin was flawless, even her scars from childhood gone. She wondered idly if her scars from only a few months ago were also gone from upon her back, but she couldn't turn enough to tell.

The only thing marring the image was the knowledge that she had had the blood of her family upon her arms and hands. She looked into her own eyes and expected to feel sadness for their passing, but she didn't. She felt at peace.

They were cursed as much as Ludwig Van Helsing was. Ludwig's hatred leading the entire family down a path that could only lead here. Now, they were free, she was free. She noticed when she woke up in the lobby that she didn't feel the warning system that she did before when she was around Dracula and his family. It was the clearest sign she could have that Ludwig was truly gone, that the Van Helsings were truly gone.

She took a deep breath before turning to the shower and turning on the water. First thing to do was to wash the feeling away.

The water was warm, fighting off the chill in her body. She stood in the shower and just let the water wash the day away before exhaustion forced her out of the comfort of the shower stall. She dried her hair and wrapped the fluffy towel around her body. She walked back to her dark bedroom and dressed quickly in the nightgown that Mavis had provided.

The gown reached her mid-thigh, but it was enough. She yawned again before crawling into the softest bed she had ever known and drifting off to sleep.

Out of the shadows of the dark room, Dracula stepped towards the bed in silence, his eyes wide as waves of emotion rushed over him.

He had only meant to come and speak with her, about what he didn't know just yet only that he had to talk to her. He hadn't expected her room to be engulfed in darkness as it was, or for Kate to step out of the bathroom in just a towel.

He had froze, sure she would sense him as she had before. She hadn't. Instead he had been memorized as she removed the towel revealing her body to him.

Granted it wasn't the first time he had seen her without her clothes, but the last time she had been lying on her stomach with all of her sensual parts covered. She had also been recovering. This time, she hadn't sensed him in the room and he had seen it all.

The scars that had marred her back when she rescued Dennis were gone, leaving smooth skin. Her hair looked soft and his hands itched to feel it. Her skin was pale and smooth all over her body, it took all his self-control not to move and draw attention to himself, to not reach out and touch her.

He hadn't meant to peep on her, but he hadn't had an opportunity to announce himself before she dropped the towel and then he had been shocked into silence. He hadn't expected his reaction to her.

Once she climbed into the bed he waited a few more minutes until her breathing evened out and he was sure she was asleep.

He moved and looked down at her as she slept. Her red hair was fanned out on the white pillow and her face was relaxed. She almost looked childlike. He reached out and gently touched her cheek. Her skin was soft under his fingertips.

" _But just because you've already zinged doesn't mean you cannot fall in love."_

Martha's words came back to him as he looked at the sleeping woman. He wasn't sure if he was in love with Kate, but he did know that the idea of continuing to exist without her was a bleak one.

Martha was right, he would have taken an eternity to make a choice between them. On the one had he had the beautiful Martha, his one zing, the mother of his child. They had had such a short time together before hatred tore them apart for all time. He could have easily chosen her and no one, not even Kate, would have blamed him.

But...Kate.

Her bloodline had been instrumental in killing his wife as well as hundreds of other monsters over the years. But Kate went against the Van Helsings, choosing instead a peaceful coexistence rather than violence. She had saved his grandson, protected his secret, killed her family to save him and his family, killed herself to save them all from the hatred of Ludwig Van Helsings. She was kind to him, made him laugh, enjoyed quiet moments as well as the crazy ones.

Before he realized it, he was leaning down until his face was inches from hers. She smelled clean and wonderful. He noticed that her scent had shifted, no longer indicating the poisoned blood she had had as a Van Helsing. He moved closer, his eyes closing as he took a deeper breath, inhaling the scent of her deep into his lungs. His nose gently touched hers.

The sensation of him touching her nose cause her to move slightly, sending Dracula back in a panic, his eyes wide. She shifted and settled, falling back into a deep sleep.

Dracula calmed before moving back to the door. He couldn't stay in this room with her, not while she was so vulnerable, not while she smelled so good.

Not while he was lusting for her.


	14. Aftermath

Kate awoke the next night refreshed, as if she had finally slept after weeks of nothing. Even the sadness was gone, replaced now by relief. There was no more need to fear the Van Helsing family.

She sat up and ran her hands through her hair, feeling the tangles release as she did. She pulled her hands back and looked at them to see that they were glowing.

She blinked in shock before remembering that she now possessed the power of the Ancients. Amelia had given this to her. She had done this without thinking. It made her wonder what else she could do.

She stood and looked at the nightgown Mavis had loaned her. She took a deep breath before closing her eyes and imagined the gown she couldn't wear outside of the bedroom into a dress she could.

Moments later she opened her eyes and found that the nightgown had transformed in a black dress in the style of a summer sun dress. It was sleeveless and formfitting to the waist. She smiled, filled with joy for the first time in a long time, before turning back to her sneakers. Attempting the same trick, she closed her eyes and when she opened them the sneakers had transformed into a pair of dark sandals.

She smiled wider before quickly putting them on her feet and walking to the large window, throwing the curtains back.

The sun had just set leaving a purple hue in the sky. She looked up and saw the first twinkling stars beginning to appear. She felt at peace as she took a deep breath, the crisp mountain air filling her lungs. It really was beautiful here in Transylvania. She wanted to stay here forever.

She turned back and started towards the door when a glint of gold in the corner of her eye stopped her in her tracks. She looked over to the side table where she had sat the golden ring the night before. She picked up the ring and stared at it.

To most, the ring would be nothing more than a pretty accessory. To Kate, it was a reminder that her love would not be returned, never be returned.

Martha's ring was a reminder that Dracula had already zinged. She knew that he would not return her feelings. She also knew that Martha was gone, for some reason asking Amelia to save her.

Her hand wrapped around the ring and she took a deep breath. She looked around the room once again, this time her heart sinking. She wouldn't be able to stay here because she couldn't remain with him, loving him, knowing that he would never love her back. Dracula would never love her. She would have to leave this place.

However, she would first need to return the ring.

She walked out of the room, her mission clear.

She passed a few monsters and humans who were staying at the hotel, a few giving her a second glance, although she didn't know why. Could they tell that she was a former Van Helsing? What was it they were thinking about her that they kept staring at her? She didn't dwell on it.

She turned to walk down to the lobby and froze in shock.

No blood. No bodies. Nothing.

She walked down the stairs, her eyes fluttering around the room and trying to find any hint of the massacre she had committed the night before, even a speck of blood upon the carpets. There was nothing.

"Wow," she said standing in the center of the lobby. "Housekeeping must have worked overtime."

"That is what they are paid for."

Kate froze at the sound of that voice. She turned, her eyes wide, as she looked up at Dracula. "Count..."

His eyes seemed to flicker at the sound of his title, but he still smiled. "You must be hungry."

Kate blinked, suddenly aware that she was hungry, before nodding. "I could eat," she replied, as if unsure how to interact with him.

They walked together to the restaurant, which at this time of the evening was filled with mostly humans.

With new eyes, Kate looked around the room. Before she learned the truth about Dracula, this room had always been full of just humans at just a glance. Her Van Helsing sense had indicating something more, her eyes only saw humans. Now, with the advanced abilities of the Ancients flowing through her, she could see the monsters from the humans. Right now, there was no monsters in the room except Dracula.

She followed Dracula through the room to a small table next to the wall. He pulled out her chair and she calmly sat down, although her heart was pounding in her chest.

As Dracula took a seat across from her, Kate didn't know how what to say to him. She had no idea what he was thinking or what he was wanting to discuss with her. Was he upset about Martha? How could he not be. He had to be devastated, but she had no idea how to speak with him about it.

Instead, she reached over and placed the ring on the table next to him.

"Martha's ring," she said softly. "I forgot to return it to you yesterday."

Dracula slowly picked up the ring and held it in his hands, almost staring at it. Kate felt her heart tug at the sight. His zing was really gone now.

"I wish I could bring her back."

She hadn't realized she had spoken until Dracula responded, "She made the choice to go."

Kate's eyes widened. "What?"

Dracula wrapped the ring in his fist and looked at Kate, his blue eyes soft. "She made the choice. Amelia said that she could save one of you since you died wearing Martha's ring. Because of that your souls were still connected. Martha chose to save you."

Kate took a deep breath. "That's not fair," she replied. Then her eyes widened with a gasp. "That's what Amelia meant by 'at Martha's insistence.' I didn't take that time to think about it at the moment, but..." She sighed. "I'm so sorry, Count. A Van Helsing made you lose your wife again."

She looked down at her hands on the table, her heart heavy. Dracula had lost his wife twice because of a Van Helsing. How could life be so cruel to such a wonderful creature? It made no sense.

A hand appeared in her vision and covered hers. She followed it up to meet Dracula's eyes. He was looking at her with sad and kind eyes, but there was something else there as well, something Kate didn't recognize from him.

"Martha made the choice because I couldn't."

Kate blinked, shocked at those words. "What? What do you mean?"

Dracula took a deep breath. "Amelia told me to choose between the two of you, making it clear that the other would be gone forever. I stood there and tried to pick between you and Martha.

"I couldn't."

Kate shook her head. "I don't understand," she said firmly. "Martha was your wife, your zing! You must have chosen her immediately. There is no other answer."

Kate stood, her hands pulling away from Dracula's, her eyes flashing in confusion. "It doesn't make sense." She looked at Dracula as if not understanding anything he had said to her. "You must have chosen Martha and Amelia misunderstood. That has to be it!"

"It's not," Dracula said firmly. "I honestly could not make the choice between the two of you."

She turned, her eyes wide and almost ran out of the restaurant, her thoughts of food forgotten.

Kate's mind whirled as she moved quickly deeper into the hotel. Dracula would have chosen his wife, not Kate. There was no reason he wouldn't have been able to make the choice. But why tell her that he couldn't? It didn't make any sense. She could think of no logical explanation as to why he couldn't make that choice.

Martha was his zing! She knew that, understood that. To think anything else would just give her false hope. He had to have picked Martha, she understood that she meant nothing to him compaired to Martha.

Dracula couldn't love her, wouldn't love her. She knew that and had understood that a long time ago when she first realized her feelings for him. She had accepted that as her fate. Why wouldn't he be able to make that choice?

She stopped dead in the hallway as she more memories came back to her.

When she was bleeding to death, Dracula had been holding her hand. She had thought that she was going to die and she had admitted her feelings. She had told him that she loved him.

Was that why he was saying that he hadn't been able to chose? Was that why he felt the need to lie?

She leaned against the wall and ran her hands through her hair. He was kind, of course he would lie. He didn't want to hurt her by admitting that he would have chosen his wife. He didn't want to hurt her feelings.

Martha made the choice, not him. He would have chosen Martha for sure.

She stood and turned only to bump into a solid body. She took a step back as a pair of arms encircled her.

She looked up into Dracula's blue eyes. She hadn't sensed him a second time. It was actually one of the abilities she still wished she had right now.

"Kate," he said softly.

His arms were firm around her body, holding her close to him. She almost wished he would pull her closer, aligning their bodies against each other. He seemed to lean closer to her, his eyes almost glowing blue.

She pulled back from him, moving out of the circle of arms she wanted to stay in so desperately. As she pulled away she noticed that his eyes seemed to stop glowing. It was probably her imagination.

"Count," she said firmly. "I understand that you do not wish to hurt my feelings."

"Kate?"

"...and I realize that you may have felt obligated to try and make me feel as if this wasn't all my fault. You would have chosen your wife for sure. It's obvious."

She wrapped her arms around herself, her eyes filling with tears.

"You don't need to feel guilty about my feelings for you."

Dracula narrowed his eyes in confusion. What was she talking about?

Then, her words came back to him. He had spent so long focusing on what Martha had said to him, he had nearly forgotten that Kate had said something to him too. Something so profound that he couldn't believe he had forgotten it.

 _'I love you Dracula. Be happy.'_

Those had been her last words before she had died. She loved him, despite knowing that he had zinged. She sacrificed her life for him. Martha hadn't seemed surprised about her feelings either, as if she had known all along. That's why she had that smile, the smile that she knew something he didn't.

"I'm leaving the hotel in the morning."

Kate's voice brought Dracula back to the present moment. Kate was turning from him, her back facing him now. Just seeing that brought pain into him that he had never felt before.

"Good night, Count."

She started to walk down the hallway. Dracula stood there and watched her leave, unsure how to follow. What would he say? He was unsure of his own feelings.

He watched as Kate turned the corner, disappearing from his sight. He stood there longer, his own mind a whirlwind.

What did he feel for Kate? Why did the thought of her leaving the hotel hurt him so deeply?


	15. Understandings and Epilogue

Dracula didn't usually spend his time sitting around. It was lazy and there was just too much to do each night that he didn't have the time.

However, tonight he pushed everything else to the side and went and sat in his room, looking up the portrait of Martha upon the wall.

She was his zing. She was his love, his wife. Yet, when the chips were down he couldn't make the choice to save her. All he had to do was open his mouth and said the words and Martha would be here with him now.

But Kate would be gone.

He ran a hand through his hair, his mind spinning. How did he feel about Kate?

He lusted after her, he knew that much. When he held her in his arms earlier tonight he had wanted to do more, had even started leaning in towards her. She was the one who pulled away. If she hadn't, he would have... he didn't know.

"Martha," he said softly, "What do I do?"

There was no response, there never was. Whenever he was lost he did this, hoping that even talking to her picture would bring him some clarity. Sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't.

 _'Just because you've already zinged doesn't mean you cannot fall in love.'_

Was he in love with Kate? Was that even possible?

Since Martha had uttered those words to him, Dracula had been trying to work out if it was possible, trying to work out his feelings for Kate.

He closed his eyes and thought back to when they first met.

Those emerald green eyes had flashed in surprise when she was caught, her long red hair up in a ponytail. She had been so carefree then, smiling just from eating Transylvanian cuisine he served in the restaurant. She had wanted to be a chef. She was a Van Helsing that defied her own family.

Now, she had acquired the power of the Ancients and was living a life completely different from what she had planned. Everything for her had changed the moment they met, she had traveled down a new path. Over those days they had spent time together, getting to know each other in the quiet moments he spared for her, he found that he cared for her, before finding out she was a Van Helsing.

He had never really done that before for anyone except Mavis. He still didn't understand why he did it for a woman he barely knew.

He opened his eyes and stood, walking to the small balcony across the room. He looked out over the forest, his mind bringing forth more memories.

She ran when she learned the truth about them, when she realized that monsters were real. Not in fear, but in shock. She hadn't wanted to hurt him or the others. She wanted to keep it all a secret, offering her life then to protect them. He hadn't been able to kill her then, he probably would never have been able to.

She had saved Dennis, almost losing her own life in the process. Had he not gone after her... He shook that thought from his head. It didn't matter, because he had.

He could still see her lying in that ditch, her heartbeat barely there, she was covered in blood and dirt. It angered him even now.

Mavis had once said that she could see past the family to the woman Kate actually was. Dracula had been able to do that to. It was why he had saved her, why he hadn't been able to kill her, why having to chose between her and Martha was such a difficult choice.

As she lay dying, she uttered the words to him that she loved him. She didn't expect him to love her back, feeling as if it could be impossible. Since the day they met, Kate had always put his happiness first, even stating that her being alive and Martha being gone a mistake.

What kind of woman would do such a thing?

He looked at the horizon and saw that the sun was starting to rise. The night was ending soon.

He looked down at the forest when he saw motion below. He blinked and focused, his vampire abilities making the image clear and zoomed in.

Kate.

She was looking back at the hotel with such sad eyes before turning to walk into the forest. She had a backpack over her shoulder.

She was leaving.

Panic filled him. How could she leave in the early morning like this? Didn't she say that she loved him? Didn't she want to stay with him? He wanted her to stay.

He paused briefly at that thought. He wanted her to stay, at the hotel, with him.

Dracula glanced at the sky. It was getting lighter, but he had time before the sun rose. He turned back to the portrait of Martha. He smiled.

"You always did know me better than I knew myself," he said before turning into a bat and flying down into the treeline.

* * *

Kate hurried through the forest. Dracula would be unable to follow once the sun rose and by then she would be too far away for him to follow.

She would take a plane and fly away from here, never to return.

Her heart throbbed in pain at that thought, but she wasn't about to stay here when it was obvious that her love would never be returned.

Dracula's zing was Martha. He loved Martha. She had no place here. To remain would break her.

She kept her senses alert as she moved. She had sensed many creatures in the forest since she entered it and wanted to make sure she wasn't shocked by any of them. She was powerful enough to protect herself, but didn't want to use that power unless she had to, especially since she didn't know the true extent of her abilities.

She paused after she was sure she was well out of sight of the hotel and allowed a few tears to fall at that point. She would allow just this and then lock these feelings away forever.

As she lifted her hand to wipe the tears away, she froze. Her ability to sense monsters was gone, but her training had allowed her the ability to sense when others were near. Someone or something was behind her.

She waited.

One...two...three!

She jumped and turned, her fists raised to protect herself, ready to fight. The person behind her moved back slightly, but stayed close. Kate froze as she realized just who was behind her and lowered her hands.

"Count..."

Dracula moved closer to her, forcing Kate to look up at him. She felt his cloak tease her fingertips briefly. She tried to move away, but Dracula didn't let her. His arms lifted and wrapped around her body, holding her close to him.

Kate's eyes widened, but Dracula didn't see any fear. Instead he saw confusion and the tiniest sliver of hope.

"What are you doing?" Kate said softly. "I'll misunderstand this."

"Misunderstand?" Dracula said with a smirk. Kate narrowed her eyes slightly at that look upon his face. What was going on here?

Kate lifted her hands and placed them against his chest. The feel of her touching him was wonderful. She didn't push him away, but she didn't pull him closer either. Instead she stood and looked up at him.

"I'll think this means more than it should," she said softly. "You should let me go."

Dracula leaned down towards her until his nose touched hers. Those green eyes flickered at him, confusion filling them. She seemed to be holding her breath/

"What if I do not want to let you go?"

Hope flashed through her eyes at those words. She didn't want to leave him, but felt she had to for some reason.

"Stay with me Kate," he said softly as the sky began to lighten with the rising sun. "Don't leave me alone."

Kate gasped in a breath. "Drac..."

"I didn't lie to you before. I truly could not make the choice when Amelia offered it to me."

"You weren't just saying that?"

Dracula smiled at her, Kate's heart fluttered at the sight. It felt like ages since she had seen it directed at her.

"No. Amelia gave me the choice. I stood there and debated it. You were right, it should have been easy. A Van Helsing for Martha, easy trade.

"Only the Van Helsing they wanted me to sacrifice was you."

Kate felt tears start to fill her eyes at his words. Dracula lifted his hands and gently wiped the tears from her eyes. His touch on her bare skin was amazing, more so than she had thought it would.

"I wondered for a long time," Dracula said softly, "why you, a Van Helsing, would sacrifice so much for me. You saved Dennis, you didn't reveal my location, you returned to warn me of your family's arrival, you destroyed the threat they were against me and my family, you even stabbed yourself as the last of the Van Helsing line. I still didn't understand why.

"Then you said that you loved me and it all became clear."

Kate lifted her hands and placed them softly against his cheeks. His skin was cool to the touch, but this didn't bother her.

"I fell in love with you during that first week we were together. I thought that you were married at first, but found it weird that I never met your wife. Then, when Frank's head had popped off at the party, I realized what exactly was going on. I knew then that I would never be able to be with you."

"Kate..."

She pulled back and looked up at him, those emerald eyes that had at first reminded him of Ludwig now looking up at him with such openness. They were only Kate's eyes now.

"I should leave now before it gets too painful," she said. "I don't want to misunderstand you..."

Dracula pulled her close and covered her lips with his own. Kate's eyes widened in shock at first, her body tensed at the unexpected motion. Then she relaxed in his arms and her own moved and wrapped around his neck, holding him close.

Time almost seemed to freeze in that moment. Seconds seemed like hours as Kate and Dracula embraced each other in the forest.

When he pulled back, he looked down into her wide eyes and smiled.

"I'm in love with you, Kate."

He was still so close to her that he could hear her heartbeat speed up at those words. Kate's eyes filled with more tears and she smiled at him as they fell.

"Am I dreaming?" Kate whispered, unsure if this could be real.

"No," Dracula replied. "Dreams eventually come to an end. I want this to last for eternity."

As the sun broke over the horizon, Dracula lifted Kate into his arms and ran back to the hotel, her own arms wrapped around him.

* * *

Epilogue...

Dracula wasn't sure how it would be taken when he invited Kate to live with him in the hotel. However, he shouldn't have worried.

Mavis, Johnny and Dennis welcomed her as if she had always been a part of the family. His friends accepted her despite her family being the sole reason most of them had gone into hiding in the first place.

Kate's genuine nature and kindness won over everyone Dracula thought would oppose them. He also knew that the most important person to accept Kate already had.

Martha accepted that Dracula had fallen for another woman and had willingly stepped aside for them to be together. She accepted Kate even thought Kate's ancestor was the cause of her death. To Dracula, there was no greater sign that this was right than that.

Kate kept her own room in the hotel, separate from Dracula's. She said that it was important that they stayed proper. He respected that, but that didn't stop him from holding her in his arms when they were alone or visiting her room at night.

Before they knew it 4 years had passed and Kate's new abilities became more natural to her. She used them to help the hotel stay in great shape and to keep monsters and humans in line. She even found that she was able to hover up to 50 feet in the air, making repairs to the chandeliers easy.

Dracula insisted that she finish her schooling that had been interrupted all that time ago. Kate did, but mostly though online courses instead. The week she was gone to take her final examinations was so lonely for Dracula. But, when Kate returned, it was like she brought the life back to the hotel and Dracula vowed he wouldn't let her leave him again.

They had never spoken of marriage, not once. Kate didn't mention it or even hint at it, perhaps in respect for Martha. Dracula didn't bring it up either, happy with the way things were. But after she was gone for that week he realized that he wanted her to be with him forever.

Kate's room over the years had become more of a closet space rather than a proper hotel room. She had long since stopped sleeping there, instead joining him in his room. She said that as long as she was next to him, she didn't care where they slept.

She had arrived back only today, but he couldn't stop himself from seeing her once the sun set.

She was lying on top of the covers in her room, sleeping, jetlag catching up with her. Her feet were bare, but she was still wearing her jeans and blouse. Her red hair was fanned out behind her. She was beautiful.

Dracula moved around the bed and climbed in next to her, wrapping them up in his cloak. Kate moved slightly before turning in his arms and burrowing her face against his neck. Dracula smiled.

Although he knew how passionate Kate could be, he enjoyed these quiet moments together. When she slept in his arms, he was at peace.

"Kate..." he whispered softly, his hand running through her hair. "It's time to wake up Kate."

Her eyes fluttered slightly before slowly opening. Those emerald eyes met his blue ones and she gave a sleepy smile.

"Was I asleep?" she said softly. Dracula smiled and nodded.

"Yes, it seems like the trip tired you out."

Kate yawned, a hand coming up to cover her mouth. She then moved closer to him and sighed. "You always smell so nice."

Dracula held her close to him. "I missed you this last week."

"I missed you too." Kate replied sleepily.

"I realized that I don't want you to leave me ever again."

"I won't," she said softly, her eyelashes fluttering against his neck.

"Will you marry me?"

Kate froze against him for a moment before pulling back and looking up at him. She was wide awake now, her cheeks flushed.

"Drac...did you just...?"

Dracula suddenly felt nervous. "I can't continue to exist without you. Marry me... please?"

Kate didn't speak for a long time, only causing Dracula to become more nervous. Why wouldn't she answer him? What was she thinking?

"Yes."

Dracula didn't seem to hear her. "I'll understand if you want to think about it or if you aren't sure. I mean we've never talked about it before and I'm just kind of springing this on you, but I..."

Kate leaned forward and kissed the count, stopping his nervous speech. When she pulled back, she smiled at him.

"Yes, I'll marry you."

Dracula smiled before pulling Kate closer to him and kissing her once again.

Although it was a family hatred that had brought them together, it would be love that would keep them together.

From now and into eternity.

* * *

 **I hope that you all enjoyed this story. Thank you for reading!**


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